Love, Always and Forever - Elladora Potter
by Luuh2311
Summary: When your brother and his wife, your friend, are dead... When your nephew's taken away from you to live with an unloving aunt... When the man you loved, trusted, your husband, turns out to be a murderer and the responsible for all your loss. How do you move on?
1. Chapter 1

**Late August, 1974**

Mother fussed over my brother non-stop, since the beginning of the day, as she always did, for the past four years. Father neither joined on her fussing, but didn't try to stop it either. Instead, he watched with a smile as James assured her for the hundredth time he would be fine, he would be careful and that he had everything he might need.

I envied him. I could say I hated him, but that would be only my resentment talking. I didn't really hate him, I just couldn't stand him.

James Potter.

You see, you would think that me, being the girl, the firstborn, would be the spoilt one.

When I was born, I was their miracle. Mother and Father were in their late forties, and almost giving up conceiving. So I was their angel, their little miracle, their perfect child. That was until mother, surprisingly got pregnant right before her fiftieth birthday. And when James was born, they couldn't consider themselves more blessed, for it was a boy, the heir they had given up hope on having, the one that would carry on the family's name and legacy… Their miracle. My family was traditional in every way acceptable on our society. We were pure-bloods, we were rich, we were influent and to keep all of those status, unfortunately, the family was also sexist.

My mother, was a happy case. She was betrothed to my father, but she quickly fell in love with him, so they had a happy marriage. And while father's family was traditional, they had different views than those of my mother's family. Dorea Black discovered she fit much better in the Potter family, not only because of her love for Charlus, but also for her beliefs. Of course, she would never treat anyone badly for their status but she also would like very much if her children, especially James married someone… acceptable.

And marriage had become a sudden worry of hers, and it wasn't difficult to understand why. My parents were not young by any means, and time was not being very kind. Father had dropped his position as Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation, and was now retired, only working on caring for the many family assets. Mother had never worked, but had also given up on her social functions, that, although not very important, could be a burden for being so time-taking and in my opinion, boring. I had lost count of how many tea-parties and dinner-parties I was taken to, accompanying my mother, and I was grateful that school stopped me from being available to them.

Now, my mother constantly asked me about my thoughts on betrothals, seeking information about boys I might like and mentioning appropriate candidates to husband. Father never said anything about it, and I liked to think that it was because I was his little girl and he wouldn't like to marry me even if needed.

I was the firstborn, two years older than James. Although I was only sixteen, I was undoubtedly more responsible. And I would be responsible for everything, including my brother if something were to happen to them soon. And I knew, they were concerned about my capability to handle everything. There, entered the marriage issue. If I was married, I wouldn't have to deal with everything alone. Someone would be there to help. I refused to think they were worried about me having to wait until James was responsible enough to arrange a betrothal for me as the man of the family. James was so childish, I hoped my parents knew that if he was the one to arrange anything, I would be old and grey.

"Cassiopeia?"

I was pulled out of my thoughts with mother's voice. She smiled at me, setting her glass of pumpkin juice down and arched an eyebrow.

"Are you alright dear?" she asked.

"Yes" I said nodding and pushed the food around my plate. "I'm not fully awake yet, mother, sorry"

"Well, school starts tomorrow, you should be ready for the morning classes, dear" she said.

"Do you have everything you need?" father asked, buttering his toast as Hooky, our house elf poured him more tea. "We still have time for a last run to Diagon Alley if needed"

"Not if Sirius doesn't wake up" James said, jumping off his seat and rushing out of the room.

"Hooky, prepare the table for our guest" mother said and the elf snapped his fingers, and there was a plate, cutlery and a glass set beside James' place on the table.

"I have everything, father, thank you" I said, resuming the subject.

"Did you have time to use the broom care kit I gave you?" he asked smiling.

"Yes, father, thank you, it was very useful" I smiled.

"Just win all games" he said winking.

"I will" I chuckled.

It was moments like these that I forgot how they were obvious on the preference for James, and I let go of all my resentment for it.

"Of course, she doesn't win alone" mother said, as the boys came in, wrestling and laughing. "And all teams have a fair chance" she said pointedly.

I rolled my eyes at them. While I had no direct problems with Sirius, his behavior when he was with my brother was idiotic to say the least. They were arrogant, obnoxious, boastful, annoying, and so mischievous it drove me mad.

"I'm the seeker, mum. The game is won every time I'm successful" I said. "And I have to say, I'm quite good at it"

"Yes, but your brother and Sirius are responsible for Gryffindor's won matches" mother said.

I wanted to remind her that James precious Gryffindor team hadn't won from my team on his two years as chaser.

"Yes, Cassiopeia, not everything is about you" James said rolling his eyes.

"Do not call me Cassiopeia!" I snapped, glaring at him.

"Mother calls you" he retorted.

_Just because I could not disrespect her by snapping at her._

"You can't" I said.

"What's wrong with Cassiopeia?" Sirius asked frowning.

It was the name of my aunt, Sirius' great-aunt. And while I had no problems with her as a person, I hated the name.

"My name is Elladora, that's why" I said, frowning back at him.

"Sorry, darling, I forget you prefer your first name" Mother said smiling.

I still could not understand the name thing. First, she only followed Black's tradition on naming after stars or constellations with me, James got away. And second, she named me, and didn't use the first name.

"What about you, boys?" father asked. "Everything ready?"

"Yes, sir" Sirius said politely. Since mum had already interrogated James on having everything he wanted and needed, the question was more to Sirius. "Thank you for letting me stay this week"

"You're very welcome, darling" mother said, reaching over and patting his hand. "I understand how our family can be… overwhelming"

I winced at her way of saying how ridiculously mad the family could be. Sirius, on my opinion, was unfortunate to get sorted into Gryffindor. His parents were not overjoyed, since he broke the tradition. And just to get the matters worse, Sirius not only was a Gryffindor at heart, but he enjoyed it immensely. He had strong opinions, and he was not afraid to voice them, even if in this house, he was punished for it.

Mother immediately identified with him. She also had different opinions than those of her family, but as she usually said: she preferred to be silent and discreet on them since family altercations were not something she enjoyed, at all. We were not close to the Blacks, but with her option to remain quiet, when we did meet, it was not as bad as it could be. And James was happy for mother's choice, because when he befriended Sirius and realized how much Sirius hated his summers and staying home, it allowed mother to ask her niece, Walburga, to let him stay a few days, or a week, every now and then, and no one questioned it.

"Mum, can Sirius stay over Christmas break when we come home?" James asked, smiling charmingly at mother.

"Of course!" she said immediately.

"Dorea" father warned gently.

She looked at him and frowned, shaking her head before giving Sirius a small smile.

"I'll talk to your mother as soon as possible… At least I'll have time to convince her" she said gently.

"Thank you, Mrs. Potter"

While mother was his great-aunt, since we were not close to the Black family, Sirius never bothered to use family titles.

When I asked to be excused, mother told me to stay and started talking about a tea-party at the McLaggens', and how Mary McLaggen had a charming son, Tiberius. I sat, listening, but not saying anything. I would not fall into any traps. I watched the boys shoveling food into their mouths, wondering if they, at the sight of food, forgot all manners. Mother had given up on admonishing James for speaking with his mouth full, as the boys exchanged words about Quidditch between bites. Sirius was nodding as James recalled the last match they had against Hufflepuff, when he looked up, reaching for his glass. His grey eyes met mine, and I'm sure the disgust at their eating habit was clear on my face, for he swallowed, and quickly wiped his mouth with his napkin. He gave me a hesitant smile, and I couldn't help smiling back seeing the maple syrup on his chin he had missed. His smile widened until it turned into a beaming grin, which I really didn't understand, so I turned away and looked back at mother. She had a cocked eyebrow at me, and an amused smile.

"What?" I asked hesitantly.

She grinned and shrugged, glancing at Sirius – who was back to his conversation with James – before looking at me.

"Nothing, darling" she said. "Nothing"

* * *

**September, 1974**

I frowned as I heard light footsteps, and stopped, turning around. I was not paranoid, I had heard it. But I was the only one there. I continued walking and when I got to the dungeons, the strap of my messenger bag gave away, and the bag fell, all of the books for Muggle Studies and History of Magic scattering on the floor, the parchments flying a few feet away. I heard what resembled a snicker, and I slowly crouched, gathering my books and waving my wand to fix the strap of the bag. I had just gathered the last parchment, and stood up abruptly, turning and reaching out. My hand came in contact with something and I grabbed it, pulling on it hard.

"No!"

"James!" I snapped, recognizing the voice.

As I continued to pull, bit by bit he came into view, and I pointed my wand at him. The cloak finally fell and he continued to try to pull it back.

"I'll rip it in pieces" I threatened.

"It's dad's!" he protested, scowling at me.

I looked between him, Sirius and their chubby little friend, Pettigrew. Sirius watched us fight, while Pettigrew kept looking down the hall, worried.

"I know" I snapped. "Give it to me, and I'll be gentle when I tell him you stole it" I said.

"He gave it to me" he scoffed.

"He… what?" I mumbled.

My fingers loosened around the soft fabric, and he finally pulled it away from me, frowning at me. I couldn't believe it.

"He gave it to you?" I asked outraged.

"Yeah!"

"I'm the firstborn!" I said angrily. "It's mine by right!"

"I'm the male heir!" he retorted.

"James" Sirius said quietly and Pettigrew shifted on his feet nervously.

"I hate you!" I said to him.

He paused, his face going red with anger and glared right back.

"I hate you too, Cassiopeia!"

"What do you want here?" I asked, fighting tears.

"Nothing, we're leaving" Pettigrew squeaked, grabbing James' arm.

"Who's there?"

I froze, glancing over my shoulder as Filch's voice carried down the corridor, a soft meow following. I didn't need to check my watch to know we were past curfew.

James pulled on the cloak, the two boys rushing to his side and disappearing.

"Not so fast, James" I hissed, reaching out.

As soon as I grabbed something, I pulled hard, and the body clashed against mine, sending us both to the ground. Quick footsteps were heard, going the opposite direction from where Filch was coming. I scowled at Sirius as we stood up.

"Great. Now, you will tell me what you were up to" I said.

"Nothing" he said shrugging.

"Well, well…"

I turned around and saw Filch smirking at us, holding a lantern up to his face as Mrs. Norris stood beside his feet, staring at us.

"Detention" he said happily.

"Great" I said turning and glared at Sirius, who sighed.

* * *

"I hope you're happy" I grumbled.

The problem with getting detention from Filch was that he had no respect for student's needs, like sleeping. If it had been a professor to find us, we would probably have detention the next day, after our classes were over, but Filch decided we should start immediately. Peeves had done a mess in the library, and since Madame Pince's work did not include dealing with the poltergeist's mischief, Filch should have cleaned it. Now he was snoring away in an armchair by the library's door, with Mrs. Norris on his lap, watchful, and he had confiscated our wands so we had to clean up without magic.

"You were the one that got into a fight with James. If you had just gone into your common room, we wouldn't be here" he grumbled.

"Well, you were in the dungeons, where you should never be, and you were following and pranking me. I think it's all your fault" I said. "And that book is not there"

I took the book from him, and walked to another shelf, looking for the right place to put it.

"We weren't pranking you" he said.

"Yes, and my _new_ dragon-skin bag just fell apart" I rolled my eyes.

"That was Peter. It was not the plan" he said with a sigh, leaning against the bookcase. "I told James not to take him, he can never control himself. On pranking or laughing" he rolled his eyes.

"Why?" I asked frowning.

"He's just silly Peter" he shrugged smiling, running a hand through his black locks.

"No, I mean… Why are you always pranking someone? Don't you find it immature?" I asked.

He stared at me.

"Forget it" I sighed, turning back to the pile of books. "I forget you are fourth years"

"We're not immature" he said.

"Sirius" I chuckled, giving him a skeptical look. "You and James tripped each other every day the last week of the summer. You changed sugar for salt, just to ruin my tea. Last year, you made my hair go green. You threw dungbomb on Herbology class last week…"

"We like to have fun" he shrugged, his lips twitching.

"Alright… Just leave me out of it, please" I said with a sigh. "I hate it"

"Do you…"

"Do I what?" I asked when he trailed off.

"You don't really hate James, do you?" he asked, frowning.

"Of course not" I sighed. "He's my annoying little brother, and he gets on my nerves" I rolled my eyes. "I'll apologize, or call it even if he does something before I apologize"

"You resent the fact that your parents, especially your mother prefer him" he said.

"It's not that" I denied.

"My parents put Regulus on a pedestal for getting in Slytherin and being the obedient son" he smiled sadly. "It sucks, I get it"

"No, you really don't" I said smiling sadly. "You resent your parents for a lot more than that… They are easy to resent… My parents, are good parents, and I really have nothing to complain. I'm just being vain, shallow brat, seeking attention"

"You're not" he said shaking his head, and giving me a smile. "You're none of those things. You are a _Potter_, and vain and shallow are Black traits. You're perfect"

I smiled and chuckled, smirking at him as I raised an eyebrow.

"You know, I had heard of that sly charm of yours, but never seen in action" I said and he blushed bright red making me chuckle. "Stick to the brainless, naïve girls, those never notice and are most likely to fall for it"

"Too bad" he said quietly.

"Why is that?" I asked, taking a few books in my arms.

"You're not brainless and naïve" he smirked.

I chuckled and he grinned as I walked past him to another row of bookcases.

* * *

**Late September, 1974**

I got on my Silver Arrow, and everything was a blur around me as I flew above the stands, and looked down, watching as Madame Hooch walked to the middle of the field. The Ravenclaw seeker flew by, and hovered a few feet up and to my left, watching me and Madame Hooch. I sat straight on the broom, and played with my gloves, the cold, autumn wind blowing the few strands of hair I couldn't get into a ponytail. The bludgers and the snitch flew and Madame Hooch looked around at all players before throwing the quaffle in the air. As the chasers fought to get the quaffle, and the beaters to keep the bludgers from harming their team players, I looked around for the snitch. The Ravenclaw seeker had flown down, to look for it, but I kept at a safe height, slowly flying around the pitch. As I dodged a bludger, snapping at one of my team's beater to keep an eye out, I saw the little golden ball, circling one of the goal posts of our side. I grinned, glanced at the other seeker, who hadn't seen it yet and leaning down on my broom, I sped towards it. I dodged the bludgers and the Ravenclaw chasers as I advanced, and soon realized their seeker had realized I had already seen the snitch and was following me. The snitch flew up, and I followed, reaching out. The other seeker flew parallel to me, and seeing my fingertips not very far from the snitch, he bumped hard into me. I grunted, straightening back to my path but he slammed into me again, I would return the favor, if he had not been a burly seventh year. As he bumped into me a third time, my fingers finally brushed against the snitch, and I grabbed it tightly.

"Ella!" someone screamed.

I was just getting my balance back from the last bump, ready to turn and raise my fist with the snitch up in the air when something hit me on the side, hard. I cried in pain and fell from my broom, hitting something as I fell to the ground.

I groaned, blinking my eyes to clear my vision as I opened them and winced.

"Ella"

I turned my head to the right and saw James, his friends and a few teammates standing beside my bed. James grinned, and sat down on the edge of the bed. My teammates weren't very happy with the Gryffindors' presence that was clear, but stayed tightlipped.

"Hi" I whispered.

"Hey, glad to have you back" James said. "I was almost sending an owl to mum"

"We won, right? It was not a dream?" I mumbled, blinking my eyes.

"Yeah, we won, you caught the snitch" Richard Ravin, my keeper said and extended something.

James took it from him and showed me the snitch, before laying it on my hand. I winced as my arm hurt when I wrapped my fingers around it. Slowly my teammates filled out and only James, Sirius and his friend, Lupin I think, stayed. Lupin sat on the edge of the bed next to mine, watching us and giving me a small smile.

"What happened?" I asked.

"A bludger hit you pretty hard" Sirius said. "And when you fell you hit the goal post, which knocked you out"

"Broken ribs, concussion, a sprained wrist and a lot of bruises and scratches… nothing fatal" James said.

"Well, thanks for clarifying. I would never have thought you would be at my bedside if I weren't dying" I chuckled, but whimpering as my ribcage throbbed painfully.

"I don't hate you. You're my sister, of course I would be at your bedside… Sprained ankle or almost dying" he said quietly, looking down at my hand.

"Hey" I said, flexing my fingers.

He reached out and I linked my forefinger with his, and he gently took my hand, the snitch between our palms.

"You're my annoying, hell-raiser, ugly git brother, and I love you despite all of that, alright?" I said softly.

He grinned at me and his friend stood up, clapping Sirius on the shoulder.

"We should go" he said quietly.

Sirius nodded and smiled at us, following him. A few feet away, he turned around abruptly.

"Andromeda wanted me to ask if she could visit you" Sirius said.

"Of course" I nodded weakly. "Oh, and… thank whoever brought the flowers" I said looking at the large vase.

"Sirius' did" James chuckled. "Thought it would cheer you up"

"It was Remus' idea" Sirius said, blushing softly on the cheeks as he ran his hand through his hair.

I looked between the boys, and the tall, skinny, green-eyed boy gave me a hesitant smile as he shrugged.

"Thank you, Remus and Sirius" I smiled.

They left and I turned back to my brother.

"When can I get out of this bed?"

"Madame Pomfrey said you'll have to stay two days, but after that, you'll have to take it easy for a week or two" he smiled.

"Great" I deadpanned, closing my eyes. "I'm gonna sleep a bit more, and if you wake me, I will tear your hair out, James" I threatened, just so he wouldn't get used to me being nice.

* * *

For the next couple weeks, James and his friends – which clearly were doing it for James – gave up their time to prank between classes to accompany me to classes, carrying my bag and books, and making sure no one would bump into me. The first day, James carried me down the stairs, against my loud protests, and for the next couple days his friends insisted on doing the same. I convinced James to drop it, when Peter had so much difficulty carrying me that he almost fell with me in his arms. It was ridiculous.

So, for the next couple weeks, my few not very close friends avoided me like the plague. Which I guessed to them it was basically true, since I had Gryffindors with me almost all the time. Since I refused to give up on some of my nine subjects, workload was a bit too intense for my state. Remus would help me in the library, denying every day that it was James who ordered him to. I knew James would never stay in the library for longer than five minutes, so I could bet he had asked his friend to make that 'sacrifice' for him. Except Remus seemed to truly enjoy his time in the library, even if he was constantly bothered by me, by going to fetch me books instead of letting me get them myself. At first, I thought he only pretended to be enjoying, so as not to make me feel so guilty and chew James' ear off for making his friends do it. But as he talked to me, genuinely interested on my N.E.W.T. level classes, and my O.W.L.'s, I realized he wasn't lying. Remus proved to be very intelligent, making me forget he was a fourth year – James definitely wasn't that smart. He was also very calm, tolerant and fair-minded, something I discovered on our arguments over Ghoul Studies and History of Magic, when most of the time, I quickly lost my temper, while he remained calm and defended his opinion. He proved himself to be good-natured and very kind, always asking me if he could help, even though he would help even if I said no, and always asking if there was something else he could do when he saw I was in pain or before he left me at the stone wall in the dungeons, the entrance to my common room. Remus had also a bit of a light tongue. As we walked to the Slytherin dungeons one day, and I remembered the day James, Sirius and Peter were there, asking him why he wasn't, he slipped that James wanted the password to the Slytherin common room, and he had not been interested in it. He immediately realized his mistake, and I assured him it was alright, I had imagined it was something like that.

When the third week after I had been released from the hospital passed, and after I went to Madame Pomfrey to have her all-clear, the boys stopped following me around. I hated to admit that I kinda missed James being so brotherly, even though we bickered all the time we were together. I would miss Sirius telling me jokes just to put me in a better mood, despite being babied by my baby brother's friends. And I would miss Remus' company, for he quickly wormed his way into my routine and in my mind I already considered him a friend. I could not say I would miss Peter's awkwardness, even though he had his funny moments.

To my surprise, two days after their babying stopped, I found Remus in the library. For the next week, he kept on showing up when I was there, and we sat together, and he was even able to help me in Transfiguration, a favor I returned by helping him with Arithmancy.

"So, I'll see you tomorrow?" I asked on a Thursday night, as we walked out of the library.

"Can't, Ella, sorry" he said awkwardly, looking down, his light brown hair falling into his eyes. "I… I have to go home, my mum is sick, and I visit her every month"

"Oh. I'm so sorry" I said softly. "If there's anything I can do…"

"No, but thanks" he said shaking his head. "Bye"

He was gone before I could finish my goodbye.

* * *

It was Wednesday night when Remus returned. I hadn't seen him all week, and I was talking to Andromeda at the Slytherin table when I saw him arrive at the Great Hall for dinner. I watched as he walked to the Gryffindor table, and sat between my brother and another Gryffindor boy, I didn't recognize. He nodded at something James said, keeping his head down and he looked tired, weary. I frowned, and Andromeda turned on her seat across from me and followed my gaze.

"What has James done now?" she asked amusedly.

"Nothing, it's… his friend Remus, he looks exhausted" I said.

"The tall one?" she asked and I nodded. "Aunt Walburga almost had a fit when Sirius wanted to invite him to their house this summer" Andromeda said and leaned over a bit. "His mother is muggle"

"I imagine the fit she threw" I said rolling my eyes.

"You really don't mind?" she asked hesitantly.

"Ahn… no" I answered hesitantly, because with the Blacks you could never know what was wrong to say.

"I want to tell you something" she said quietly.

"What?" I asked, grinning, because I liked a good gossip.

She nodded her head and stood up. I finished my pumpkin juice and followed her. She didn't say a word until we reached the corridor, which was empty since all students were having dinner.

"I… I met someone, two years ago" she said and bit her lip.

"Really?" I asked smiling. "Tell me"

"Ahn, he had just graduated, so he's almost three years older than me and, he got a job at Hogsmeade's apothecary shop… His name is Edward Tonks, he likes to be called Ted" she grinned. "He's… sweet, and funny and, I think I love him"

"You think?" I chuckled. "You sound like a love sick foolish girl" I said. "In a good way" I added.

"He asked me to marry him, after I finish school, next summer" she whispered, looking over her shoulder at the Great Hall's entrance.

"And? What did you say?"

"I said yes…"

"Congratulations!" I said excitedly.

"No, but…" she scowled and sighed. "He's muggle-born"

"Oh"

Poor Andromeda. Born in the Black family and falling in love with a muggle-born.

"I know, my family will never accept us" she sighed, leaning against the wall.

"Andromeda…" I paused, looking back at the Great Hall. "My mother, doesn't really agree with the Blacks' opinions, but she's married to a Potter, so it's not really that problematic. She doesn't say anything because she doesn't want to severe links to her family"

"That's quite smart. Sirius goes through hell for being so rebellious" she said.

"Well… I say, marry him. If your family doesn't accept… Well, I say screw them" I said and she smiled at my enthusiasm. "You're in love with him, Dromeda. Be happy with him, and if you need anything, I can assure you, I will help you, and my mum probably will too"

She grinned, her eyes watering and she hugged me tightly. I had never been close to her, we talked sometimes because she was my cousin and only a year older, and now I knew why she had been so hesitant to talk to me. What if I was prejudiced like all of our family?

"Thank you" she said when she pulled back. "I'll make you my matron of honor"

"You don't have to" I said rolling my eyes.

"I will not accept no for an answer" she smiled.

"Alright" I chuckled.

We turned to go back into the Great Hall.

"Oh, and by the way… I think the Remus boy? I think you two might be cute" she said, winking as I frowned after her.

* * *

"So… I think I got it this time" Remus said pushing his number chart to me. "I'm not sure" he said uncertainly, frowning at the parchment.

I took a quick look at it, bookmarking my book about history, and smiled as I checked it for the second time.

"It's perfect" I said.

"Really?" he asked surprised.

"Yeah, Remus" I said rolling my eyes. "I'm not sure why you're so surprised. You're very intelligent, it wouldn't take you long to get the hang of it"

"Thanks" he chuckled, pulling the sheet back and organizing his things.

"Remus?" I asked, opening my book again and playing with the bookmark.

"Yes?"

"Next Saturday is Hogsmead weekend" I said and smiled at him. "Would you like to come?"

He stared at me, blinking slowly.

"With you?" he asked hesitantly.

"Yes"

"As in… a… hm, date?"

"Smooth, Remus, very smooth" I chuckled and he turned bright red. "Yes, as in… a date"

"Why? I mean, I'm in fourth year" he said confusedly.

"Yeah… so?" I asked frowning.

"Can I give you an answer later?" he asked hesitantly. "I don't know"

"Yeah, sure" I nodded, organizing my things as well. "So… see you"

I waved at him and left the library, going to my common room. I wanted to bang my head against the wall that held the entrance to it. I was thankful that no one was in the common room, and I lay in the couch, and sighed.

"Great. If I can't even get a fourth year to go on a date with me, I might as well give up and date the Giant Squid" I grumbled, watching said squid passing by the windows.

* * *

"Don't do it"

I looked up from my book , and looked up, James was standing over me, with his arms crossed and a scowl.

"What?" I asked, frowning in confusion.

"You asked Remus out. Why? You can't do that" he said.

"Actually, I can" I said rolling my eyes. "And it's none of your business. He told you?"

"He asked if it was alright" he deadpanned.

"And you told him off?" I narrowed my eyes at him.

"No… I told him it was fine" he sighed.

"You make no sense, you realize that?" I asked amusedly.

"I didn't want him to think I had something against him. He's fine"

"Then why can't I ask him out?"

"Because… Because you can't. He's my friend. You can't mess with my friends' head. We're in fourth year, and you're in sixth, what the hell are you thinking?" he ranted.

"I am thinking that my brother is an idiot" I snapped standing up and scowling at him. "Here I was thinking you were worried about me… I'm the one he left hanging. I'm the one who didn't get an answer. I'm the one embarrassed, and yet, you come and give a lecture for inviting your friend to go to Hogsmeade with me? You're such a great brother" I said sarcastically and walked away from him.

* * *

"Hey, Elladora"

I turned from my conversation with Andromeda, and looked up at Remus. When I looked back at Andromeda, she gave me a smile and walked away. Remus smiled hesitantly as he took her seat, across from me. He was walking on dangerous territory, sitting in the Slytherin table, even if there was just me, Andromeda and a few first years.

"So, about Hogsmeade…"

"Don't" I cut him off with a wince and he frowned. I looked down at my hands, picking at my perfectly manicured nails. "Really, Remus, it's fine. I'm sorry if I put you in an uncomfortable position. It was never my intention…"

"I was actually going to say I would like very much to go with you" he said hesitantly, interrupting me.

I looked up and arched an eyebrow.

"Really?" I questioned.

"Yeah, sorry to leave you waiting, I just… I thought I should ask your brother if it was alright with him. Didn't want to make things awkward" he shrugged.

"Oh" I said, smiling hesitantly. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, of course" he smiled.

"Okay, so… Meet you at 10 o'clock at the courtyard?"

"Great"

"Okay. Now, you really should leave. You're on enemy's territory" I said gesturing to the table.

"Alright" he chuckled, standing up. "See you later"

"See you"

* * *

It was just my luck that on Saturday it was raining. I could already see myself getting all wet, as I was not good with charms. I dressed properly for the weather, for winter was slowly creeping on us, and it seemed it would be a bloody cold one this year. I was walking to the courtyard, pulling on my gloves and saw Remus leaning against wall beside the double doors, watching the rain, with his hands on the pockets of his coat.

"Hey"

He turned around and smiled at me, and I want to say he blushed, but I could not say if his cheeks were pink because of the cold or something else.

"Hi" he stood up straight.

Remus was the tallest of his friends, almost towering over James and Sirius. Peter was not even worth mentioning, as it seemed the boy forgot to go through his natural grow spurt when hitting puberty. Since I was older, I didn't lose by much to Remus, but I still had to look up, holding my beret cap on my head as it threatened to slip down my straight hair.

"Nice start, hm?" I asked glancing at the pouring rain.

"I'm sure the Three Broomsticks is warm" he shrugged.

"Three Broomsticks?" I asked.

"Yes… Ahn, the pub?" he asked frowning.

"Oh, yes! Sorry, I never been there"

"Never?" he asked in astonishment. "How?"

"Well, I, hm, don't usually go to Hogsmeade, and when I do, I do some shopping and come back" I shrugged.

"Would you prefer going to Madam Puddifoot's?" he asked with a slight wince. "We can"

"No, please, let's not" I chuckled and he visibly relaxed. "Too much pink and cheesy for my taste. I would like to see this pub you speak of"

"Alright, let's go" he smiled.

We both turned to the door, and our enthusiasm deflated as we looked at the pouring rain. I adjusted my beret and coat and looked at Remus. He waved his hand, conjuring an umbrella, and opened it. We walked into the pouring rain, and I linked my arm through his, so we could stand close and both protected.

"So, I, hm, thought James would freak out when I told him about your invitation" he said as we walked across the school grounds. "He was pretty calm"

I scoffed and he seemed curious about my reaction.

"He told me to stay away from you, basically" I rolled my eyes. "Said something about me meddling into his friendships and age difference"

"He didn't tell me anything" he frowned.

"It was cute how worried he was about you" I shrugged and smirked. "Almost borderline gay, but… cute"

"Ha, very funny" he deadpanned, smiling.

We picked up our pace and just as we were reaching the Three Broomsticks, the rain started to ease a bit. We walked in, the umbrella vanishing with a flick of his wand, and he told me to get a table while he got us something to drink. I got us a table at the back, not really enjoying how many Hogwarts' students were present and turning their heads to watch me. Remus returned with two butterbeers and took off his coat before sitting across from me. He was wearing a dark teal sweater, that made his eyes look much brighter, but also highlighted how pale he was. Of course, living in England and Scotland could do that to anyone. My barely sun-kissed tone of skin was a product of a long holiday at the south of France, a year before I started Hogwarts, and it was practically gone by now.

"So, how do you like your sixth year?" Remus asked.

"It's… going smoothly. With no O.W.L.'s and no N.E.W.T.s yet, it's pretty calm. I'm just adapting to my new classes" I shrugged and sipped the butterbeer, the warm sweet liquid going down my throat and warming me up almost immediately. "What about you? My fourth year was pretty boring"

"It's alright" He smiled. "At least I found someone that enjoys the library"

"Yes, I do not see you, my brother and Sirius having much in common" I chuckled.

"They're great friends"

"So, I heard your mother is muggle" I said, resting my chin on my hand as I looked at him.

"Yes" he said hesitantly and drank his butterbeer.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to sound offending… I just, never met anyone muggle, and never have been close enough to muggle-borns to ask about them… I really like Muggle Studies, it's quite fascinating and fun" I said excitedly. "So, how is it?"

"It's really, quite normal" he said chuckling with a light frown. "We can't do magic when we visit her family, but that's about it. The rest of the time we live normally, she's used to magic by now"

"I would really like to meet her, she must be so cool, marrying a wizard and adapting so well into our culture"

"I think she would find you just as amazing" he chuckled.

"Oh! Sorry, I forgot she was ill" I scowled and gave him a small smile as his face fell. "Is it bad?"

"No, not really" he muttered.

"If there's anything I can do to help… Mum was quite skilled in healing magic, she would have applied to St. Mungo's had she not married dad"

"Thanks" he smiled.

I changed topics them, noting that I already knew what books he liked, but that was about it on my knowledge of his tastes. We stayed there for a couple hours, and our butterbeers were refilled a few times. I had heard from James that Remus' family was not as well off as Sirius or Peter, but he insisted on paying and I really enjoyed his chivalry.

I saw James, Peter and Sirius come in and they sat across the room, but James kept glancing in our direction. Remus followed my gaze and gave James a small wave, which James returned with a nod.

"Do you want to join them?" I asked.

"Not really" he said shrugging.

"Come on, then" I said, getting up and pulling on my hat. "I want to go to Honeydukes"

He stood up, helped me with my coat and we walked out. The rain had stopped, but the temperature had dropped severely. I shivered as we walked quickly to the shop, and as on every Hogsmeade visit day, it was full of Hogwarts' students. Ambrosius Flume was the first to see me, and gave me a grin, waving at me. I smiled back and greeted his wife quickly as she passed to refill a jar of sweets.

"I have a sweet tooth" I told Remus. "Ambrosius likes to say that I should be his partner with how much I spend here"

"It's a family thing then? James also likes sweets" Remus said watching as I took a couple of cauldron cakes.

"No, I don't think you understand" I said, turning to him and keeping my expression serious, he frowned. "James likes sweets. I can't live without them"

"Glad you have Quidditch to help you spending all those calories" he chuckled.

I grabbed a couple of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, a box of exploding bonbons, a pumpkin pasty and three sugar quills. I stood by the counter, and Mary, Ambrosius' wife apologized for not being able to attend to me at the time, as she rushed around, wrapping gifts and helping first years. I leaned against the counter, used to the chaos and reached out and took a jelly slug. I popped it into my mouth, being the glutton I was for candies, and wrapped it around my tongue, enjoying its flavor before chewing on it.

"Hm… The best" I said to Remus. "Have you ever had one?"

"Yes, at the Express" he smiled, amused by my antics apparently.

"Take one!" I said, taking another one. "Mary and Ambrosius really don't mind, they know I could never pay them less than what is right"

"No, I actually going to take one of these" he said reaching over my shoulder and pulled back, looking down at me as he unwrapped the acid pop. "I was always curious about what it tasted like"

He offered to me, but I shook my head and watched as he popped it into his mouth. Not even ten seconds later, he winced, and gave up on it, frowning at it.

"Ew, how do they sell these things?" he grumbled, still making a face.

"Oh, come on, don't be such a baby, it can't be that bad" I chuckled.

"It's like lemon, vinegar, pepper and absinth all together"

"Have you ever tasted absinth?" I asked amusedly.

"No… but I reckon it tastes like this" he said smiling.

"Let me see"

I took the pop from him and tasted it. It was actually really bad. I gagged and threw it in a nearby trash, ignoring Remus' chuckles as I reached for jelly slugs.

"Here, this helps" I said, taking one and offered to him.

He looked at the jelly slug I held to his face and hesitantly opened his mouth. I dropped it on his mouth and he quickly chewed on it.

"Much better" he said watching me eat another one.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing" he chuckled.

"Ella, dear, how are you?" Mary said, finally arranging time to attend to me.

"Very well, thank you. How are things going around here?" I asked smiling at her, turning around from Remus.

"Much better now that Hogwarts' students are back" she chuckled, putting all my sweets in a bag. "Anything else?"

"We ate an acid pop, and about seven jelly slugs" I said, reaching for my money. "I'll take a dozen of the slugs"

"I'll cover it" Remus said.

"No, that's my treat for today" I said.

"Ella…"

"Nah, you paid for the butterbeers" I said smiling at his frown and turned back to Mary with a smile. "How much?"

"Four galleons" she said, smiling at Remus. "She's a stubborn one"

"She is" he chuckled.

"This is Remus, a friend of mine and my brother's" I said, extending the gold coins to her.

"Oh, yes, your brother has been here earlier. Bought a bunch of blood-flavored pops"

"Probably pranking the first years" I said rolling my eyes.

"Or the Slytherins" Remus added.

"First year Slytherins" I said shaking my head and took the bag from Mary. "Incorrigible"

* * *

We walked back to the castle, thank Merlin, this time without the need for an umbrella, and sharing some of the sweets.

"Ew, no, dog food" Remus scowled after his last attempt at Bertie Bott's Beans.

"I got lucky. Strawberry" I smiled.

"What's the worse you found yet?" he asked.

"Rotten egg" I said frowning at the memory. "I vomited the whole afternoon, what about you?"

"Vomit" he winced.

"I'm torn between Strawberry and Toffee Pudding for the best" I mused as we walked inside the castle.

"Not Chocolate?" he asked.

"No, too normal"

He smiled down at me and I realized the day was over. His common room was up the grand staircase, and I had to go down to the dungeons. I smiled up at him as we stopped at the bottom of the staircase, and even though I would not be going up, I got on the first step, almost equaling our heights.

"I had a nice time" I said.

"Me too" he said nodding, and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Thanks for the sweets"

"Thanks for the butterbeer" I smiled.

"Thanks for inviting me, I really enjoyed it…"

"Ahn, Remus?"

"Yeah"

"Your cue to kiss me was almost three minutes ago" I chuckled.

He blushed bright red, and shifted on his feet. I could see his hands twitching in his pockets as he looked down at his feet. So cute. He looked up at me, opening his mouth to say something, but I leaned in and pressed my lips to his, lightly. It only lasted a few seconds and then I pulled back, blushing myself. He smiled hesitantly at me, and I got down from the step, consequently stepping closer to him. I raised my free hand and grabbed the lapel of his coat, tugging on it. He hesitated, but leaned down and kissed me. I got on my tiptoes so he wouldn't have to bend – a reminder of how tall he was for a fourth year – and he gently cupped my face. When we pulled apart, we were both smiling, our cheeks matching in their hue of pink.

"See you tomorrow?" he asked quietly.

"See you at dinner" I grinned and kissed him again.

* * *

**AN: Hello again!**

**I had promised myself I wouldn't start anything before finishing at least one of my other stories - I know, I suck - but I came by so many stories AU where James had a sister, and as I read them, even with the good ones, I couldn't help but think of all different things I would have done. And I also remembered there was a Dorea Potter, née Black, and I thought that was quite interesting.**

**So that's what brought this on. I have almost a hundred pages ready for this - this first chapter took 15 of them.**

**I hope you like it.**

**REVIEW!**

**xoxo Luuh**


	2. Chapter 2

**November, 1974**

"Hi" I said to Remus as we met on the Great Hall's entrance.

I kissed him softly, and his fingers intertwined with mine.

"Hi" I whispered against his lips.

"Hi" he grinned.

It had been weeks since that first date, and things had been going more than smoothly. Remus was always a gentleman, a bit too shy sometimes, but overall perfect. Since neither of us had really important exams by the end of the year, we slowed down a bit on our studies, and the time we were usually in the library reading was spent on the Great Hall or even in the Library, just talking and kissing. James had still not spoken a word about it to me, and Remus hadn't said anything, so I was hoping James had finally realized it wasn't any of his business. Although, James almost shooed me whenever Remus asked if I wanted to sit with them at dinner. He would stay quiet, and only would talk to Sirius, practically ignoring my presence. As I said, annoying younger brother.

We walked into the hall, holding hands and he did not even ask before leading me to the Gryffindor table. We sat together beside Sirius, with James and Peter across from us.

"Hey, boys" I said smiling at them.

"Hey" Sirius said, giving me a small smile while Peter gave us a nod, not pausing his eating.

"So, you'll be seating with us now?" James asked.

I stared at him and looked at Remus, who frowned at my brother.

"Yes, I invited her" Remus said.

"Thanks for making me feel so welcome" I muttered.

"It's not that I don't want you here. It's just…" James stopped, frowning as he looked for a nice excuse.

"You don't want me here" I deadpanned.

"We won't be able to talk freely and you're a Slytherin. Besides, Andromeda seems lonesome without you there"

I didn't need to look to know Andromeda was eating alone, staring down at a book.

"Andromeda is studying for her N.E.W.T.'s, but that's fine" I said and stood up.

"No, you don't have to go" Remus protested.

"It's fine. I'll leave you boys to talk" I smiled down at him, and with a quick peck, I turned and went to sit across Andromeda, even though she wouldn't utter a word while so engrossed on studying and I would be bored, more likely.

* * *

"Why did you do that?" Remus frowned at James.

"We have things to talk" James shrugged.

"Like?"

"Like tomorrow night. You haven't told her and we can't talk to you" James said playing with the food on his plate.

"You could have waited until we were at the dorm. You just like to antagonize your sister" Remus scowled and stood up.

"Where are you going?" Sirius asked, looking up.

"I'll sit with her, to keep her company"

He strode to the Slytherin table, ignoring the glares her housemates gave him, and sat next to her. She gave him a beaming smile and he kissed her softly, before they both started to eat, talking quietly.

"Blimey" James grumbled, "She got him good"

"You really should be nice to her" Sirius said. "Remus has enough problems without having to choose between us and her"

"It seems he has chosen already" Peter said watching the couple. "Can't blame him, she is pretty"

"That's my sister" James scowled and shook his head. "We should have said something"

"Said what? Leave them be, James" Sirius said. "They're happy. He's happy"

"That's very rare" Peter said nodding.

"Yes, but he can't date her" James protested.

"Because she's your sister?" Peter asked amusedly.

"Because Sirius has a crush on her!" James snapped.

"I don't!" Sirius scowled at him.

"Oh, come on, Sirius!" James hissed. "I saw the way you watched her over the summer. And while I'm not happy, Remus can't date her because that's breaking the code"

"What code?" Peter asked confusedly.

"The friend code, the brother code, the friend's-sister code" James said shrugging. "I don't know, it's just not right, and it's not fair"

"She pursued him, James" Sirius said, shrugging. "Even if I liked her, which I don't…"

James scoffed.

"… Remus won. Stop being so pissy about it, and don't ever use me as excuse again" Sirius said, pointing his fork and James. "I'm happy for them, you should be too"

James rolled his eyes and went back to his plate. Sirius looked over his shoulder and saw Ella laughing at something Remus said, leaning into him. He felt like he had swallowed something bitter, like acid pops.

* * *

"So, tomorrow we could stay in the library since it's really cold, even though it would be lovely to enjoy the Saturday outside" I said as Remus and I walked out of the hall. "Can't wait for the spring, so we can enjoy the lake…"

"Ahn, tomorrow I'm going home, to see my mum" Remus said, frowning as he looked down at his shoes. "I'll only come back next week"

"Oh"

"Sorry, I forgot to tell you"

"No, it's fine" I assured him with a smile and squeezed his hand. "I just… I guess I'm gonna miss you" I said blushing.

"I'll miss you too" he said softly, smiling back.

I stood on my tiptoes and kissed his softly. He put his hands on my waist and slowly slid them across my back, until he had his arms wrapped around me. I buried my fingers in his light brown hair, messing it up as I felt his tongue brush across my lower lip, so softly, it felt like a feather. I willingly parted my lips, and our tongues touched slowly, sensually exploring, igniting a rush. I let my hands fall from his hair and wrapped my arms around his neck tightly, pressing my body against his as close as possible. As I went to pull back to breath, I tugged on his lower lip with my teeth and I heard an animalistic growl come from deep within his chest, feeling through our pressed chests the vibration of the low sound. I pulled back, and was amazed by how dark his eyes had turned. The green was as dark as the Forbidden Forest, and it made me shiver for it had a hint of danger but it excited me. I pulled back a bit more and he slowly unwrapped his arms from my waist, so I took his hand and dragged him to the nearest broom cupboard, not even caring if someone, except a professor or staff, saw us. I pushed him inside, and closed the door behind me. He looked around with a frown but as soon as he turned to me, I crashed my lips to his, pressing my body against his lean one. He moaned against my lips before deepening the kiss, wrapping his arms around my waist once again, almost lifting me off my feet. I loosened his tie as we kissed and popped a few buttons of his shirt, and pulled the half untucked shirt completely loose from his trouser's waist. I slipped my hands under the fabric, and to his back, holding onto his shoulder blades as the kiss grew and grew until I could not think clearly and was left breathless. I pulled back to breath, and even in the dark his eyes glowed at me, danger and excitement flashing on them. We kissed again and I sunk my fingernails into the flesh between his shoulders, scratching down his lean back. He groaned, and pushed me against the wall. My head hit the stone wall pretty hard, but I couldn't care less. He pulled back and looked down at me.

"Did I hurt you?" he asked nervously.

"God, no" I whimpered, concentrated on the feeling of him completely pressed against me. "Don't stop. Please"

He watched me for a long moment, and it felt like a century for my body that was aching for his touch again. He kissed me once again, and his left arm left my waist, and then his hand was on my hair, gently cupping the back of my head as his fingertips gently massaged my scalp. I moaned, letting my hands run free across his flat stomach, feeling the muscles clench underneath my touch as his whole body stilled and not so subtly, he pulled back a bit.

"No" I mumbled against his lips, hooking my fingers on his belt loops and pulled his body back flush against mine. "Like this"

"Ella…"

"Touch me" I whispered hotly, brushing my lips against his jaw, as I gently scratched down his stomach.

He froze completely, breathing heavy and kept his eyes closed.

"Remus?" I asked softly.

"I don't have control" he muttered.

"Neither do I, I guess" I chuckled, caressing his chest now. "I get carried away"

"It's easy to" he mumbled nodding.

"Come to my Common Room tonight" I whispered.

He looked up with a shocked frown.

"After eleven, no one will be there… The password is Elizabeth Burke" I told him.

"Ella…"

"I'll miss you"

* * *

As I had predicted, everyone was gone from the Common Room by eleven. I sat on the couch in front of the fire, and waited, playing with a couple cards that had been left behind on the table from an exploding snap game second years had been playing. The fire warmed the room, and it was the only source of light on. I heard the stones moving and looked behind me to see Remus walking in, hesitantly. He looked around in awe, and smiled when he saw me. He walked to me and I pulled him down to sit with me.

"It's nice in here" he said.

"You sound surprised" I noted amusedly.

"Well, this is Slytherin" he shrugged, grinning at me.

"Hm, then maybe you shouldn't be befriending with me" I said leaning in.

"Maybe" he said and closed the distance, kissing me softly.

I deepened the kiss, and slowly moved, so I was straddling him. He groaned, his hands resting on my waist and I covered them with my own, trying to guide them somewhere more pleasant. He finally gave in, resting his hands on my thighs. Well, it was not where I was trying to put them, but it was quite nice.

"Merlin" he muttered against my lips and I kissed along his jaw. "What are you wearing?"

I had changed out of my uniform to a nightgown and covered it with a silk robe. His fingers twitched against my bare skin, brushing against the hem of my nightgown. His rough skin contrasting with the softness of the silk.

"You're wearing too much" I mumbled close to his ear, unbuttoning his shirt. "I want to feel you"

"Ella… I don't know…" he said hesitantly, his hands freezing and I feared he would stop.

"Please… You have me aching" I whispered, pulling his shirt open.

"I… I never… Ahn…" he stammered nervously as he let his right hand run up my thigh a bit, slipping under the silk but not touching anything important.

"Me neither" I whispered and nibbled on his ear. "I just want to feel your touch, nothing else"

He relented, leaning forward as we kissed so I could push his shirt off. As we kissed his hands tightened around my thighs, and I let my robe fall down my shoulders. I pulled back as I ran my fingers across his chest. I looked down and saw faint, thin scars across his chest. I frowned, but he wrapped his arms around me, his hands on my shoulders and pulled me to a rough kiss. I whimpered against his mouth, fisting his hair in my hands, as I pressed my body against his. His hands trembled as he ran them down my shoulders and arms, before hesitantly resting them on my hips. I pulled back to breathe, and after gasping for air, he gently brushed his lips across my jaw and down my neck, whispers of kisses. My nightgown had ridden up a bit, barely covering my ass, and the fabric of his trousers felt almost rough against the inside of my thighs. He grunted as I hesitantly rubbed against him, and his hands on my hips tightened almost painfully. I lowered my head, kissing his neck, from behind his ear to where it met his shoulder, and took his hands in mine, putting them back on my thighs, his fingers slipping under the nightgown on my upper thighs. He squeezed them as I grinded against him again, giggling as I was met with not only the hardness of his belt. I brushed my lips against his, his eyes were closed, his lips parted and his brow furrowed, his cheeks red. He leaned up a bit, his lips meeting mine, as his hands ran up my thighs, hesitating as he met the lace of my underwear before continuing to my hips, pulling my nightgown as he went. I rested my hands against his chest, kissing him passionately as I grinded against him. I moaned and his grip on my hips tightened. This was the farthest I had been with a boy, my last "boyfriend", but I had been wearing jeans. This felt much better, more intense.

"Remus" I gasped against his lips.

"Bloody hell" he grunted as his hips thrust up. "Don't stop"

"Never" I sighed, returning my lips to his.

I quickened my pace, his hips would thrust back a few times, and I was thankful that his trousers were black, because by the feeling of my underwear, I knew there would be a wet patch on his clothing. I was kissing down his neck, when he thrust up at the same time I was grinding, and his hands on my hips pressed me down while gently rotating my hips. I moaned, and bit into his neck, trying to keep quiet. He let out a sound so animalistic, his chest vibrating against my hands, as he held me still and I felt him shudder. His teeth sunk into my shoulder, and I gasped as through the haze of pleasure I felt slight pain. He pulled back, throwing his head back, breathing heavily, and I leaned against him, resting my head on his shoulder, trying to catch my breath as well. I giggled at the light bruise I had left on his neck, tracing it lightly with my fingertip.

"I think I've marked you" I whispered.

He hummed and lifted his head, smiling. I leaned in and kissed him softly, and as I lifted my hand to cup his cheek, I felt a sting on my shoulder. I pulled back, and looked down at my shoulder.

"Ella…" Remus whispered horrified.

"Well, you brought love bite to a different level" I giggled, tugging the strap of my nightgown away from the fresh wound.

"Oh my God" he whispered, staring at the bite. "Oh, God. What have I done? I'm so sorry, I never meant to… Oh, no"

"Remus" I said soothingly as he pressed the heel of his hands against his eyes, his fingers wounding on the hair that had fallen over his eyes, so tight I feared he would rip it off. "Remus, stop" I whispered, trying to pull his fingers free. "It's fine"

"It's not fine!" he snapped.

"It doesn't hurt and it's not bleeding that much" I said, wiping a drop of blood from his lips with my thumb. "In fact, I really liked it" I smiled.

He uncovered his eyes, frowning at me.

"You don't mean that…" he said shaking his head. "You don't understand"

I cupped his face and made him look me in the eyes.

"Hey… I really don't care" I said sincerely. "I enjoyed it, I'm happy, and I want you to stop self-loathing over something so stupid. I really don't care, Remus. And if it makes you happy, I'll see Madame Pomfrey in the morning and she'll heal it up, so it won't leave any scars"

He closed his eyes, his frown deepening as he gently wrapped his fingers around my wrist.

"Don't ruin this, please" I whispered, resting my forehead against his. "I… I really like you, and I don't want our… relationship or whatever to be affected by something so trivial"

"Forgive me" he whispered.

"There's nothing to forgive. But if it makes you happy, of course, you're forgiven"

I gently kissed him, and his lips were soft, hesitant, careful against mine. I pulled back, and pulled my robe on, not moving out of his lap while he pulled his shirt on, silently buttoning up, not looking at me.

"Considering my brother belongs to your inner circle of friends, I would like it very much if you didn't tell anyone about tonight" I said blushing and kissed his cheek. "It will be out dirty little secret"

"James would kill me" he mumbled, his eyes rising to stare at my shoulder, where the light pink robe was staining red.

"I'll miss you this week" I said, finally succeeding on getting his attention as I caught his eyes and he smiled hesitantly.

"Me too" he mumbled.

I kissed him softly, and moved so I was sitting next to him, and used my wand to rekindle the fire. Slowly, he relaxed, as we talked and softly kissed for the next couple hours, but I still saw fear and remorse in his eyes. He left when I was almost falling asleep on his shoulder, and I just knew this week would be dreadful.

* * *

Remus returned only a week and a half later; looking exhausted and had no rest since he had to catch up with the classes he missed. The snow was sticking to the ground, so it was very rare for students to be out on the grounds. The holidays were close, and students seemed happier and more relaxed at the prospect of going home for two weeks. Andromeda complained that not only she would have to endure her sisters and their betrothed, but the seventh years had been given essays to do during their holidays. The only essay I had that could take away some of my free time was Slughorn's, but I had already finished, and planned on giving it to him early, before going home, with some crystallized pineapple, hoping it would make him kinder on grading it.

"So, I was thinking" Andromeda said during dinner. "During the Easter break, I should sneak some things out, so when I graduate and announce my engagement to Ted, my family won't be able to stop me from leaving"

"Like what?" I asked.

"Things I wouldn't want to lose… Mostly things I bought, but some photo albums, clothes and books… Ted suggested I left my trunk with him, just in case" she shrugged.

"Sounds like a good idea. Who knows how the family will react" I said, frowning. "What if they don't let you leave?"

"Well, I'm a witch of age, so I could apparate out of there… That is why I have to get my things out first. If they don't throw me out, they will want to keep me hostage" she mumbled.

"I can help" I offered. "I'll visit during Easter Break, and leave with your things. We can shrink them and put them in my purse or something"

"Would you?" she asked smiling.

"Of course"

"Great" she said. "Ted will be happy to know I have help on it… He's deeply worried"

"I can understand"

"But we'll have to hope Regulus keeps quiet" she whispered.

"Why?" I asked glancing at Regulus, sitting with a couple of boys down the table.

"Well, you and Lupin haven't been much discreet. I mean, you kissed him on the Great Hall. If Regulus tells the family, they might give you a hard time"

"Let them. I don't care" I said shrugging.

I looked over her shoulder and saw Remus sitting with my brother, Sirius and Peter. He had a book open beside his plate, but was currently laughing with his friends. He hadn't talked to me all day. In fact he hadn't approached me since he came back, it was always me going to him. I stood up, telling Andromeda I was going to my dormitory and walked out of the hall. I sat on the courtyard, wrapping my robes tightly around me, and opened the book for Muggle Studies. I was just finishing the chapter on the importance of vehicles to muggles when I heard footsteps approaching. I looked up and saw Remus approaching, his hands deep in his pockets. He sat beside me and I looked back down to my book.

"Have you ever used muggle vehicles?" he asked softly.

"No" I muttered.

"They're nice. You don't have to be covered in soot from flooing, or dizzy from apparating, and you can stay on the ground"

"I like flying. I'm seeker"

"My mother can't stand it" he chuckled. "It must be the biggest difference between wizards and muggles"

"How is she?" I asked, flipping the page.

"She's alright" he sighed.

"Hm"

"I'm sorry"

"What for?"

"For being distant" he said and I finally looked at him. "I really didn't mean to… I just… I don't want to hurt you again"

"I told you it was fine, Remus. I didn't even go to Madame Pomfrey and it's all healed" I said closing my book. "I asked you not to let something so silly affect us"

"I know. But I still feel guilty" he sighed.

"Will you, please, let it go? I didn't see you for ten days and when you came back you barely spoke to me… I felt… foolish"

"Why?" he frowned.

I looked back at my book, and opened it on the new chapter. Muggle Economy.

"Ella…"

"You left that night and practically ignored me after that" I mumbled. "I thought maybe you… You… I don't know, had enough or something"

He slipped his hand over mine and turned it, intertwining out fingers. I looked up and he pressed his forehead against mine.

"I'm such an idiot" he whispered. "I'm sorry, I never meant to be an arse to you"

"You were" I smiled.

"My only regret is hurting you" he said. "I-I really like you"

"Good" I said and brushed my lips against his. "I like you too… And I would like very much if you came home with me for the break… I'm sure James will be happy too"

"Would your parents be okay with that?" he asked.

"Yes, I asked mum. She'll be happy to meet you" I said. "I didn't tell her about us, only that I had met you and James had mentioned bringing you"

"I'll owl my parents and see if it's alright" he smiled.

"Great" I said, scooting closer, and rested my head against his shoulder.

He wrapped his arm around me, used the Bluebell Flames spell to provide us some warmth and read the book with me.

* * *

**December, 1974**

"Come on, Remus, let's play quidditch" James called, poking his head into the room and scowled as he saw me snuggling against Remus on the couch.

"Ahn…" Remus looked from James to me.

"It's fine" I sighed.

Since we had arrived home two days ago, James was constantly interrupting us, always trying to get Remus to go with him.

"See you outside!" James said and disappeared, his footsteps echoing down the hall as he rushed outside.

"Do you want to play?" Remus asked, smiling. "One more player would be nice"

"I'm not sure my brother will enjoy my presence…" I said and grinned. "I'm in"

He shook his head in amusement as he always did when I was antagonizing James. He deserved it.

We walked out the house, into the back yard, holding hands and James stopped flying around with a quaffle, and frowned at us. I grinned at him, mounting my broom and flew to him.

"Good idea" I said, and stole the quaffle.

"Cassiopeia" he whined, going after me.

"Do not call me Cassiopeia" I snapped, turning around.

"I didn't invite you to play" he said scowling at me. "It's a boy thing"

"Not anymore, Remus invited me" I smirked. "Grow up"

"How I wished Sirius was here to play beater and knock you off your broom"

"I'm touched with your affection, baby brother" I rolled my eyes.

Remus had taken one of James' old brooms, and flew to us, watching our argument with a worried frown.

"Who plays keeper?" I asked.

"You" James said.

"Fine, if it makes you happy, Jamie" I said, taking my wand and with a flick, three circles of light appeared on air, to be our goals. "Good luck, baby" I said winking at Remus and gave him the quaffle.

James flew away, grumbling and Remus followed. They exchanged a few words and then Remus was flying in my direction, holding the quaffle under his arm. James bumped into him and stole the quaffle, escaping as Remus tried to get it back. For the next hour, as always during quidditch, James and I stopped arguing and had fun. Remus seemed to relax a bit, when he realized we could be nice to each other – we just didn't like to.

* * *

"You look beautiful" Remus smiled, blushing lightly.

"Thank you" I said looking down at my light green gown. "Slytherin much?"

"No" he chuckled.

"Damn, I tried" I said smiling. "You don't look so bad yourself"

I ran my fingers up his chest to his shoulders, eyeing his new dress robes.

"Mum insisted I should get something appropriate" he said, nervously tugging at his sleeve.

"You didn't have to, but you do look handsome" I said.

He smiled at me, and leaned in to kiss me. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and he held my by the waist, pulling me closer.

"Ew, no, stop. My eyes, my innocent eyes"

We parted and I rolled my eyes as James passed us, covering his eyes.

"I hope you roll down the staircase" I called.

"I hope dad catches you!" he retorted.

He lowered his hand from his eyes, and turned on the staircase.

"I shall not kill him, I shall not kill him, I shall not kill him" I muttered my mantra.

"You two really can't get along, can you?" Remus asked.

"It's brother-sister love" I shrugged. "He gets on my nerves, I would like to make his life hell, but we are family, so what can I do?"

I took his hand and we went downstairs together, the music from the ballroom could be heard on the way. Mum always liked to throw a party. Christmas was just a greater reason to. She would invite her friends, and dad's ex co-workers, just a few family members and have a ball. To James' happiness, Sirius was able to escape his family for the weekend, and would come to the party with Andromeda – to my joy – since she asked her parents to let her visit me. Her parents, happy that Andromeda had a friend in Slytherin, and especially myself – half Black half Potter – didn't mind her going. The rest of the Black's had other engagements. Bellatrix was throwing her own party with her new husband, Rodolphus, and the family was attending, except Narcissa and her mother, who had to attend the Malfoy's party so they could discuss the details of Narcissa's engagement. As a Christmas present, I had – with mum's help – gotten Ted to come.

"Oh, Elladora, you look stunning" mum said, kissing my cheeks and turned to Remus, greeting him the same way. "And you, Remus, look perfect for my daughter… very handsome"

"Thank you, Mrs. Potter" he said, his cheeks turning light pink.

"Please, I already told you, call me Dorea" she grinned. "Enjoy the party"

I led him to a table, and saw Hooky walking to us.

"Hello, Hooky" I said smiling at the elf and he smiled as he extended the tray with glasses of champagne. "You look very nice"

Hooky looked down at the dress shirt and tie mother probably had it made for him. Hooky had been freed before I was born. We did have other elves that hadn't been freed, but during mother's pregnancy, Hooky helped her around a lot while father worked, and was a comfort for mother. A month before I was born, Hooky had given mum knitted baby shoe he had made, and mum had given him one of dad's ties. But Hooky hadn't left. He liked his job, and he was a part of the family, not only the house. The tie mum had given him, sixteen years ago, was quite worn, since Hooky liked to wear it as much as he could. I'm sure mum had to convince him to not wear it that night.

"Thank you, Miss Elladora" Hooky said, his blue eyes looking up at me. "Miss look very pretty"

"Thank you" I said and passed Remus a glass.

I clinked my glass against his and sipped the champagne.

"Remus, mate, come on, Sirius has just arrived and mum's friends' daughters are pretty" James said, jumping on Remus to get him in a headlock.

"Get off" Remus chuckled, pulling James' arms from around his neck.

"Come on"

"I think I'll stay with Ella" Remus said smiling at me.

James sighed, rolled his eyes and walked away.

"You can go… James is not used to sharing" I said.

"I'll stay"

"You really don't have to…" I said and grinned. "Just be careful with those pretty girls, some are Veela"

"I don't think it matters" he smiled at me.

"Well, go, once my dad's halfway drunk, you can come back, and then we'll be able to dance, and snog under the mistletoes mother has put on the tree"

"Alright" he chuckled, putting his glass of champagne down on the table.

He turned to leave, and glancing around I grabbed his arm and pulled his back. I gave him a soft kiss and pulled back smiling.

"There's no mistletoe" he smiled.

"I wanted to kiss you anyway"

* * *

"Could I steal her for a moment?"

I raised my head from Remus' shoulder as he tensed, and slowly turned to face my father. We had been in a corner of the ballroom, dancing, since James and Sirius had finally let me enjoy Remus for a bit. Remus let go of me, and walked to the table where James sat, watching as Andromeda dragged Sirius to dance, ignoring his protests. I put my hand on dad's shoulder, and he gently took my other hand in his and we slowly danced, and step by step he took me closer to the other dancing couples.

"A Gryffindor, hm?" he asked smiling.

"We're just friends" I rolled my eyes.

"I should threaten him, but I fear I should really warn him about you… Poor boy, doesn't see it coming"

"Dad!" I scolded chuckling.

"He's a good boy" he said nodding, looking at something over my shoulder. "A good friend to Sirius and James… A good… friend to you, apparently. Very polite, intelligent, well mannered and good-natured"

"I think you should exchange James for him" I chuckled.

"You should stop antagonizing your brother so much"

"As if he didn't antagonize me, dad"

"Do you not think that by letting one of his best mates date his sister, he is showing some affection?"

"He told me to stay away from Remus, for Remus' sake" I deadpanned.

"Oh, James" dad laughed.

"Of course, I ignored him, as always" I grinned.

"I just want you to be happy… and careful"

"Dad" I frowned, my cheeks warming with the blush.

"And ignore what people say"

"What?" I asked frowning.

"Well… Unfortunately, even though I love your mother, you are connected to the Blacks. And people like them would strongly disapprove of your relationship with Remus. He's a half-blood"

"I don't care" I said. "He's better than most of that family"

"I know, I just thought I should remind you" he smiled and kissed my forehead. "You grew up too fast, my darling… I miss you terribly"

I rested my forehead against his shoulder as we continued to sway, fearing I would cry if I told him how much I missed him too.

* * *

"Remus" I whispered.

He groaned, turning his head away and shifted. I bit my lip, and leaned over him, kissing his cheek.

"Remus" I whispered. "Darling… Baby… Remus, wake up" I whispered in his ear.

"What?" he croaked, his eyes still closed.

I laid beside him, sliding closer to him and wrapped my arm around his waist, throwing my leg over his.

"Ella?" he croaked, blinking his eyes a couple times and frowned at me. "What are you doing here?"

"I thought, since you wouldn't sneak into my room, I would sneak into yours" I grinned.

"James and Sirius are in the room" he whispered nervously.

I looked around. Mum had given the boys one of the biggest rooms and put three beds in it so the boys could have a sleepover. I told James that was gay, but he flipped me the bird and stole Remus from me.

"I don't care" I whispered smirking and shifted so I was half on top of him. "I find the danger of getting caught exciting"

"Merlin" he sighed as I kissed his jaw. "You'll have me killed"

"No, James values your friendship too much" I said smiling. "Castrated maybe" I whispered and nibbled on his earlobe.

"Ella…"

He wrapped his arms around me and kissed me passionately. I hummed as the sheet slipped and I felt his bare chest and thighs. He tugged on the sash keeping my satin robe closed and I helped him pull it off, throwing it somewhere. He hissed against my lips as my skin made contact with him.

"You can't do this kind of thing" he muttered, running his hand across my back, tracing the bra.

"Why not?" I whispered, running my fingers through his hair.

"Because I have a weak control" he mumbled.

"Then lose it" I whispered, looking into his eyes.

He slowly slid his hands across my bare back, and pausing when reaching my panties, he continued and cupped my ass in his hands. I kissed him and he hummed into my mouth, squeezing my ass and I grinded against him. His tented boxers pressing against my hips. He rolled us over, careful not to roll out of the bed, and pulled back a bit. He kept his eyes on mine as he supported his weight on his arms and then finally let his eyes drift to my chest, staring at my white-lace bra-covered breasts. I bit my lip, feeling my skin warm under his heated gaze and I shifted under him. He looked back up at my face, and his eyes fluttered closed. I brushed against his covered erection again, and then parted my legs, so he could lie between then. I wrapped my arms around him, and pulled him down, kissing him as we got used to the feeling of being so close together. His weight on top of me, even as he tried to hold himself off, the pressure of his hips against my thighs… I thrust my hips up, encouraging him to continue. His body was lean, and besides the trail of hair that led to his boxers, and his thighs, his skin was smooth. I ran my fingers across his chest, and to his neck, pulling him, keeping his face to mine, his lips against mine. He hesitantly shifted, keeping his weight on one arm, freeing the other, so his hand could explore. As his hand settled on my waist and he ran it up and down my side, stopping when he felt the lace of my bra and panties, I thrust up again, locking a leg around his hip. He moaned.

"Shhh" I whispered, pressing a finger to his lips. "We have to be quiet"

"That's going to be hard" he muttered.

"Hm…" I thrust up again. "Hard, is it?"

"God, Ella" he said shuddering, his grip on my waist tightening.

I arched off the bed, my chest pressed to his and slipping a hand behind me, I undid the clasp of my bra. I lay back on the bed, and watched as he ran his eyes down my body and his hand slowly ran up.

"Remus" I whispered as he brushed against the underside of my breast.

More confidently, he slipped his hand underneath the bra and cupped my breast. I whimpered, thrusting up, needing to feel more. He kissed my neck, trailing down and slipped his hand out of my bra to slide the strap down my shoulders while nosing the other out of the way. He pulled back, taking my bra completely off and threw it over his shoulder, in a move that made me smile with the confidence he was showing. He eyed my breasts, his eyes growing darker, until they reached a shade just a bit lighter than that night when he went to my common room. He sat back on his haunches, his knees parted, and consequently, my legs, still parted, rested on top of his, lifting my hips a bit off the bed. He looked at me for a long moment, giving me a once over that made my body heat up to a feverish state. He reached out and cupped both my breasts, gently squeezing the soft flesh, and as I closed my eyes, whimpering, he rolled my nipple.

"Oh" I gasped.

"You're so beautiful" he whispered.

"Remus" I whispered, covering his hands with mine. "Touch me"

He slid one of his hands out from under mine, and slowly slid across my stomach. My muscles clenched in anticipation, goosebumps spreading on my skin. He continued to play with my nipple as he traced the waistband of my underwear. I opened my eyes, taking my hands and tugged on the waistband. He grabbed my wrists, stopping me and got on top of me once again.

"Don't do that. I won't stop myself" he muttered, pining my wrists above my head.

"Touch me" I breathed. "You want to, just as much as I do"

He growled quietly, and let go of one of my wrists, brushing my breasts before continuing on his path down. He paused just after brushing the waistband of my underwear, and leaned down to kiss me. I kissed him back, using my freed hand to fist his hair. He cupped me, through my underwear and I gasped into his mouth. He bit my lip, and continued to kiss me as his hand slowly rubbed, the lace, the warmth torturing the sensitive skin. He chuckled against my lips, and I just knew he had realized how wet I was. He kissed my jaw, down my neck and paused at the shoulder he had bitten, and now there was a scar. His hand pressed harder, his fingertips pressing against my entrance as he kissed the scar softly, and I moaned quietly, biting my lip so I wouldn't be loud. His fingers loosened their grip on my other wrist, and I slipped my hand out of his hold, wrapping my arms around his shoulders and pulling him to me. He slipped his hand out from between us as he settled between my legs again, still kissing my shoulder softly. I wrapped my legs around him, and he tensed. I kissed his chest and neck and shifted underneath him. He slowly began to move, his arms framing my head as he supported his weight and looked me in the eyes. I leaned up and kissed him softly, tightening my legs around him as the muscles of my lower abdomen clenched, something coiling deep within me. Pleasure. I gasped as he thrust hard against me, and threw my head back against the pillow, my eyes closing and my lips parted in a silent cry. His thrusts quickened, becoming urgent, desperate, as he gasped and panted in my ear. I tensed with a particular thrust, that I couldn't point why it was different, but it triggered my climax. He crashed his lips against mine, covering my noises, thankfully. My whole body shuddered, all muscles clenching. He didn't stop thrusting, and it dragged the high longer. Suddenly his whole body jerked, freezing against mine and he shuddered intensely. He collapsed on top of me, and I ran my fingers through his hair as we came down from our highs. I was playing with the sweaty matted hair at the nape of his neck, when I realized his whole body had relaxed, his breaths deep and even and I looked down to confirm that he had fallen asleep. I smiled and continued to play with his hair, until I felt sleep threatening to take me, and then I slipped out from under him, dressed and sneaked back into my own room.

* * *

**REVIEW!**

**xoxo Luuh**


	3. Chapter 3

**February, 1975**

"Remus" I whined, and giggled.

"Just a minute, oh, impatient more" he chuckled.

"Are you dragging me into an empty classroom?" I smirked, reaching behind me for him. "Why, you dirty…"

"Shh" he hissed.

"If I get caught in a compromising position…" I whispered.

"Surprise!"

He took off his hands from my eyes, and I blinked in shock. We were in the Gryffindor common room, and there, by the fireplace, between comfy looking couches and armchairs were Sirius, Peter, Andromeda and my brother. On the coffee table, presents and cake, the seventeen candles glowing.

"Happy birthday" Remus said.

I turned to him and smiled, fighting tears.

"You knew?" I asked.

"Even though you didn't tell me" he said narrowing his eyes but grinned. "Your brother complains about getting you the perfect gift every year"

Every year, since coming to Hogwarts, my birthday felt like a common, boring day. Before I came to Hogwarts, I would have a party, with my family and children – not friends, just mom's friends' children – and a lot of games to play. But since my first year, I only got the presents. Mum and dad would send me something and a card, James would give me his gift without a card and awkwardly wishing me 'Happy Birthday', and that was it.

"Thank you" I said throwing my arms around his neck tightly.

He grunted, steadying himself after catching me, and wrapped his arms around my waist.

"It wasn't my idea, actually…" he said.

"No?" I frowned, pulling back.

"No, I was just going to get you something, but Sirius suggested we got together" he shrugged.

I turned and Sirius shrugged from his spot beside my brother.

"Thanks" I said sincerely.

"Yeah, yeah, now, come on, make a wish and blow the candles so we can eat" James said smiling.

I took Remus' hand and walked to them, looking around the common room. It was completely different from the Slytherin common room. While I liked my common room quite a lot, this one felt more like a home. It was warm, the red tapestries only intensifying the feeling, and all furniture was of dark wood. The red couch looked a bit worn, and there were throw pillows on it, with gold embroidery. Andromeda gave me a hug, wishing me Happy Birthday and I smiled at the boys. I looked at the cake and tried to think of something nice to wish for. I closed my eyes, and leaned down, blowing the candles. We all sat together in front of the fire, talking, eating cake and sweets and laughing, mostly at the gifts the boys had gotten me. Andromeda went back to Slytherin dungeons before curfew, and Peter went to sleep after almost getting sick with so much candy.

"I'll let you use the cloak to go back, but you have to give it back" James said.

I blinked, surprised at his generosity. I nodded with a smile and he leaned back on his armchair, his feet on the coffee table. I leaned into Remus, flipping through one of the books he gave me. It was a collection of romance novels, by a muggle writer that was really famous.

"Quidditch match coming soon" Sirius said, looking into a box of Bertie Botts Beans, looking for one that would at least look pleasant.

"Hm, not very worried" I said shrugging.

"Sirius is our new beater, you should be" James said.

"Well, I'll have to keep an eye out for bludgers aimed at my head… Nothing new"

"Sirius will be careful" James muttered.

I fought a smile, knowing that after my last Hospital Wing trip after quidditch, James wouldn't dare to tell his team to go after me. It would be an easy match. Remus turned his head, his lips brushing against the side of my head and I felt him smile. I turned, and kissed him softly.

"Oi!"

James kicked my foot off the table and I pulled back from the kiss, smiling and rolling my eyes.

"Really, James, you should get used to it. I do not complain about the rumors about you or about you going after the red-haired muggle-born…" I stopped at his glare. "Alright, touchy subject" I chuckled.

"She's more intelligent than you, Elladora, you should be careful" he said.

"I only said she's muggle-born, which she is. I didn't call her 'mudblood'" I rolled my eyes. "You know I wouldn't, don't get your knickers twisted"

"Shut up" he said rolling his eyes. "I'll go to bed, there's only so much I can stand of you"

"Love you too, Jamie" I called as he went to the stairs.

"Do not call me Jamie!" he snapped, without turning around.

"Wouldn't be the Potters if they had spent the whole evening without arguing" Sirius chuckled.

"As if you didn't fight with your brother" I said. "I'm sure he gets on your nerves just as much James gets on mine"

"Regulus is worse" Sirius chuckled and stood up, stealing a chocolate frog from the table. "I'll leave you two"

"You don't have to" Remus said.

"Yes" I agreed. "You are quite pleasant without James"

Sirius chuckled but shook his head, walking around the couch.

"Thanks, but I'll be going anyway" he said pausing to pat Remus' shoulder. "Don't take too long, Moo… Remus"

"I won't" Remus nodded.

"Happy Birthday, Ella" Sirius said.

"Thank you, Sirius, I really liked everything" I smiled at him.

He shrugged, his cheeks faintly turning pink and left.

* * *

**Late March, 1975**

Almost two months later, there was a repeat of the night of my birthday, except it was James'. He even invited Andromeda to keep me company, since Remus had gone home for the week to see his mother, again. Remus' birthday had been in the beginning of the month, and we had gone to Hogsmeade on the eve, and celebrated it. Of course, it didn't stop James and Sirius from arranging a party at their common room, despite Remus' protests. James had argued it was also a chance to make a preview of his birthday party two weeks after.

Andromeda had preferred to study for her N.E.W.T.s, and so I sat on an armchair, in the corner of Gryffindor's common room, alone, watching the debauchery of my brother's celebration. It was mostly boys and a few girls that tried to catch my brother's attention at any cost… when Sirius wouldn't pay attention to them. I tucked my legs beneath me, playing with the hem of my skirt as the Gryffindors continues to laugh loudly and dance to the latest success on music.

"Hey"

I looked up and smiled at Sirius.

"Hey" I answered.

"Don't you like the party?" he asked.

"I do… Thanks for the invitation"

"You're his sister"

"Didn't make him invite me before" I chuckled.

"You're bored" he said, frowning.

I shrugged and he sat on the arm of the chair.

"I'm the only Slytherin in the room, no one speaks to me" I said, chuckling as James blocked a girl's advances throwing Peter at her.

"Sorry about that" he said. "We forgot Remus isn't here and Andromeda didn't come… I'll keep you company"

"Don't be silly, go enjoy the party" I said shaking my head.

"I don't mind… In fact, I think you found a nice spot to watch the idiocy happening"

"You're using my corner to hide from the persistent girls" I teased.

"Why, Miss Potter, how could you think that of me?" he said, acting offended and put a hand over his heart dramatically.

"You seemed happy with their attention"

"It gets old" he shrugged.

"Wow, so modest" I rolled my eyes.

"Spoke the girl getting all the attention from boys from her year, and one of the fourth year" he smiled.

"You're wrong, Gryffindors despise me" I said. "Except Remus"

"That's because he's the only Gryffindor that doesn't care that you stole the quidditch cup from us the last two years" he shrugged.

"I heard he joined the last match's party" I said smiling.

"It was a tie, doesn't count"

"I still think we should have won… I got the snitch" I huffed.

"But we scored enough to tie before you caught it" he teased.

"I told Slughorn to ask for another match" I said.

"That's a good idea" he said excitedly.

"Yes, this time you might do your job right and give me some trouble" I teased, rolling my eyes. "It was the smoothest fly a seeker ever had in all history of quidditch"

"Hey! I threw the bludger at you! Twice!" he protested chuckling.

"Really? I didn't notice" I chuckled.

"Next match, I'll throw you off your broom and catch you. You'll have to take that back and you'll owe me your life"

"You could try… That is, if I don't catch the snitch before you reach the bludger" I smirked.

"Now I understood why you're in Slytherin" he chuckled.

"Because I'm intellingent?"

"Because you're resourceful, clever, ambitious and you're determined, always trying to best people"

"You're all of those things as well. And cunning. I'm surprised you didn't get into Slytherin"

"I didn't want to" he shrugged.

"You're brave and daring" I said, "That must be why"

"Or maybe because I'm chivalrous?" he suggested.

"Right" I scoffed. "I bet the people you prank and the girls you dump wouldn't say that"

"I am a gentleman" he protested, smiling.

"Hm…"

"I came to keep you company!"

"You came to escape the girls!" I rolled my eyes. "You're only here for your own benefit…"

"Maybe" he smiled softly. "But it's not because of the girls, Ella"

* * *

**April, 1975**

"Is everything alright with Remus?" Andromeda asked frowning.

I lowered my goblet and frowned back.

"Yes, I believe so, why?" I asked.

"I went to see Madame Pomfrey, and he was in the Hospital Wing, sleeping, seemed in a bad state"

"Remus is in Hogwarts?"

"Yeah… Shouldn't he be?" she asked hesitantly.

"He told me he was going home" I mumbled.

"Maybe he was feeling sick and didn't want to worry you"

I stood up, leaving my plate of food unfinished and walked out of the Great Hall. As I was reaching the doors to the Hospital Wing, I saw Sirius, James and Peter walking out. They were talking quietly, and stopped when they saw me in the corridor.

"Is Remus here?" I asked.

"Ahn…"

Peter and Sirius turned to James, as if James was the one in charge. I stepped forward.

"Is he alright? What happened?" I asked urgently.

"Ella, he's…"

I ignored as James tried to stop me and entered the room. Madame Pomfrey was coming back with an empty tray of food, full of candy wrappings, shaking her head and rolling her eyes. I looked beyond her and saw Remus lying in one of the beds, leaning back against pillows, with his eyes closed.

"Miss Potter…"

I walked past Madame Pomfrey, and rushed to his side.

"Remus" I whispered.

His eyes snapped open and he stared at me. He looked exhausted, his arm was bandaged, and he had a scar on the side of his face. I sat on the edge of the bed, careful not to jostle him, and eyed him.

"What happened?" I asked worriedly.

He frowned, looking down at his hands on his lap.

"Ella…"

"Who did this to you?" I hissed.

He looked at me with wide eyes.

"No one…"

"Tell me" I said more softly.

I would curse the person to the next week. I took his hand in mine, and saw he had scratches all over his wrist.

"No one. Nothing happened" he mumbled.

"Something happened" I argued. "You left two days ago to go see your mum and now you're here, and didn't even let me know…"

"Ella, come on, let him rest"

I turned around and frowned at James. He looked uncomfortable as he shifted on his spot, eyeing us.

"Not until I know what happened" I snapped. "I'll hex the person back to London!"

"Nothing happened" Remus insisted, frowning. "I just… fell off my broom"

"You… fell off your broom?" I frowned. "You said you flooed home"

"Not this time" James said.

"How badly are you hurt?" I asked him softly.

"Not very badly. Madame Pomfrey knows her stuff" Remus smiled weakly. "I'll be out of here in a couple days"

"You should have told me" I mumbled.

"I… Didn't want to worry you" he mumbled.

"I was very worried when Andromeda told me, I thought something had happened to your mum"

"No, she's fine" he muttered.

I kissed his cheek.

"Now I know why you're not on the quidditch team" I smiled. "You can't even stay on your broom"

He and James chuckled and Madame Pomfrey gave us a sad smile as she told me Remus needed to rest, shooing me away from him.

* * *

Andromeda spent so much time studying that my time with Remus increased. After his broom accident, he seemed hesitant around me, but slowly things returned to normal. Unfortunately, we got detention from being caught behind the tapestry of a corridor, on an alcove, and lost our last night together before he had to go see his mum again. McGonagall seemed very disappointed with Remus, since he was one of her best students and I heard her mutter about 'Slytherin Potter, the only thing that could be a worse influence than Potter'. She sent me to Slughorn for my detention since she thought both of us in detention together wouldn't be much of a punishment. Thankfully, I got good grades in Potions, was a brilliant seeker for my team and so, one of Slughorn favorites.

"I would say it is a shame you got detention, Ms. Potter, but I have to admit I like your help very much" Slughorn said with a warm smile.

"Thank you, Professor" I smiled back, finally finishing organizing his desk.

"How is your father?" he asked, organizing his bookcase. "Enjoying retirement?"

"Yes… The Minister discovered a game during a meeting with the Muggle Minister, and took my father last week… Tha game was called polo, my father enjoyed it very much… Heard of it?"

"No. But I would love to learn about it"

"You should go with father next time… He was already scheduling with the Minister and a few other Ministry employees"

"That would be wonderful, Elladora" he grinned happily.

"I'll owl him in the morning then" I looked around. "What else could I do, Professor?"

"There are first year essays to be graded… Would you?"

"Grade papers, sir?" I asked frowning. "Maybe I shouldn't…"

"Nonsense. You're the best student of your year, I'm sure you can evaluate the first years… It was a very simple essay. I have the third years' essay to grade"

I shrugged and took the pile of essays and pulled a chair to sit on the edge of his desk. I read the first one, and looked up with a frown.

"Sir… Maybe I shouldn't. I do not know about this potion" I said.

"Of course you do!" he said frowning. "I gave you a more complex essay on the properties of it on your fourth year"

"Monkshood Potion?" I frowned. "Sorry, sir, I can't remember"

"Monkshood?" he frowned and chuckled. "See? First years. The ingredient is Monkshood, but the potion's name is Wolfsbane"

"Oh" I said and smiled. "I remember that essay, it's a fairly new potion. Created three years ago, isn't it?"

"Yes, very good" he smiled and looked back to the essay he was grading.

I continued to read and grade the first years' essays, agreeing that it was a quite easy essay. While the potion was advanced, Slughorn had only asked the first years' to describe the dangers of it. One of the students, certainly an overachiever, wrote not only about the potion and all its characteristics, but wrote about its administration and uses. As I turned the page, I feared he had continued to explain about werewolves, since it was a possible path for an overachiever. Unfortunately, I was right. I played with the quill as I read.

_… Werewolves can be distinguished from common wolves by their shorter snout, human-like eyes, tufted tail and their mindless hunting of humans whilst in wolf form. Normally, at all other times, they appear as normal humans, except from mood changes and paleness. With the Wolfsbane Potion, these symptoms can be mitigated, including their recovering time after the full moon, reducing it from almost a week to a couple days…_

"Elladora?"

I looked up from the essay to Slughorn and he eyed me.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"Hm? Yes!" I said, shaking my head.

"Well, it's past your curfew, you should go to your dormitory" he smiled. "Thank you for your help"

"You're welcome" I muttered, standing up. "Ahn, Professor?"

"Yes?" he looked up.

"Why did you give this essay…?"

"Oh! Just an idea that came to me after hearing Madame Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall discussing it last month" he shrugged.

Madame Pomfrey and McGonagall…

_"I just… fell off my broom"_

I nodded in a haze and walked out of his office and to the common room.

A week, every month. Exhaustion, paleness… Mood swings. Scratches, cuts and scars.

* * *

"Hey"

I jumped a foot and turned around abruptly. I stared at Remus with wide eyes, and he frowned at me.

"H-Hi" I mumbled.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"You frightened me" I said, taking a deep breath and willing my heart to slow down.

"Sorry" he smiled.

He stepped forward and I eyed him. He seemed fine. I sighed, took his hands and he stepped closer, before leaning down and kissing me softly. I squeezed his hands, and kept my forehead against his when our lips parted.

"We have to talk" I mumbled.

"That doesn't sound good" he chuckled.

I looked up at him and he lost his smile. He pulled me to a quiet corner of the library, and put his hands on my waist.

"What is it?" he asked softly.

"I know" I mumbled.

"Sorry?" he frowned.

I cupped his face and looked into his eyes.

"I know" I said again.

He stayed in silence, staring at me with a frown, his eyes slowly filling with panic and sadness.

"Oh"

He dropped his hands from me and pulled away, stepping back. I stepped forward, taking one of his hands, and he tried to pull it away.

"Remus…"

"How?"

"An essay" I shook my head. "It doesn't matter how…"

"You know" he said, finally pulling his hand with strength enough to get it free from mine.

He looked down at the floor, leaned against a bookcase, and ran his shaky hand through his hair. He looked lost. I stepped closer, and rested my hands on his chest, he flinched.

"Look at me" I demanded.

He looked at me, and I saw the same panic and sadness from before, but it was intensified, and slowly his eyes watered. I immediately regretted saying something. I cupped his face and pressed my forehead against his.

"Please, Remus… It doesn't matter to me" I whispered, rubbing his cheekbones with my thumbs. "I don't care, I was just worried"

"It does matter" he said, closing his eyes. "I should've stayed away from you"

"Don't say that"

"I should! I could hurt you!"

"You would never hurt me, honey" I said soothingly.

"I already did" he said, gently touching my shoulder.

"That was nothing!"

"I let it get out of control"

"Look at me" I said firmly, and he opened his eyes. "You didn't hurt me, I didn't mind. I don't mind. I don't care, don't you get it?"

"No. I don't get it" he said, trying to push me away. "You should stay away from me"

"I love you" I whispered.

He froze, his hands on my shoulders stopped pushing. He closed his eyes again, slowly shaking his head.

"I love you" I repeated quietly. "You can't get rid of me so easily, Remus John Lupin, not over something so silly"

"It's not silly!" he protested, opening his eyes.

"Fine, it's not. But still, it doesn't make my love any weaker"

He sighed, his hands dropping from my shoulders to my waist and he pulled me to him, wrapping his arms around me. I buried my nose on the crook of his neck, holding him tight.

"I forget you have the determination of a Slytherin" he mumbled. "So stubborn"

"You're stubborn" I retorted. "Refusing to listen to me… silly"

"You're one of the best things that happened to me" he whispered. "I'm selfish, and I don't want to let you go"

"Then don't"

"I love you too"

* * *

**Late April, Easter, 1975**

"Is that everything?" I asked after slipping Andromeda's shrunken bag inside my small purse.

"Yes" Andromeda said looking around her room.

"Are you sure?" I asked. "Don't forget anything"

"No, that's everything, thank you" she smiled at me.

"Let's go downstairs before someone looks for us"

We walked down the staircase to the living room where all of her family was gathered. Bellatrix was showing off her new husband, telling the family all about their new home, while Rodolphus spoke of economy with Cygnus – actually, he was speaking of his fortune. Narcissa sat, dazzled by everything her fiancée added to the conversation, staring at him, as if Lucius Malfoy was a god. Druella sat with Walburga talking of house-elves and their inability to do anything right, discussing if they should behead another one or not. I shuddered as we passed them, and sat on a couch, across from Sirius, who sat in an armchair, sulking. Regulus sat beside Lucius, not bothered by his own family like his brother. I gave Sirius a gentle smile, and he smiled back, rolling his eyes.

"Happy Easter" he mouthed.

I chuckled and took a pumpkin pasty Andromeda offered to me.

"Elladora" Walburga said.

I looked away from Andromeda and to Walburga, giving her a small smile, the best I could in the presence of these people.

"How is your mother?" she asked.

"Very well"

"It's a shame your parents already had plans" Druella said and sipped her tea. "It's been quite some time since I saw her"

"Probably hiding from shame"

We all turned to Bellatrix who was scowling at me.

"What?" Druella asked, frowning at her daughter.

"I think aunt Dorea is probably ashamed of her daughter, that is, if she hasn't been disowned yet and we weren't told" Bellatrix said, a smirk slowly appearing.

"What are you talking about?" Walburga asked.

"Oh, mother, you will not be pleased" Regulus muttered and smiled. "This shall be fun"

"Shut it, Reg!" Sirius snapped.

"Sirius!" Orion snapped.

"Elladora is dating Lyall Lupin's son" Bellatrix said, keeping her eyes on me, my glare not affecting her.

"Lyall Lupin's son?" Walburga gasped.

"The half-blood. Muggle mother" Regulus informed.

All adults turned to me, the women horrified and the men angrily scowling.

"Oh, poor girl!" Walburga said and reaching out, she took my hand. "He will pay for trying to fool a member of this family"

I pulled my hand back, turning my glare away from Bellatrix to scowl at the woman.

"I'm not a poor girl!" I snapped. "He didn't fool me!"

Druella gasped, covering her mouth and scowled at me. Walburga's comforting expression quickly turned into one of rage, as she glared at me.

"What has gotten into you, Elladora?!" she snapped. "Do you like to be a blood traitor?"

"I've had enough" I said standing up, and Andromeda stood up as well, standing behind me. "Good afternoon"

As I turned to leave, a hand wrapped around my wrist tightly. I was pulled back and I turned to face Cygnus.

"Do your parents know?" he sneered.

"Let me go" I said calmly.

"Does your mother know?" he asked louder, glaring at me. "Answer me!" he roared when I stayed quiet.

Mum knew, of course. But if I said so, they would know she didn't give a damn about this family's traditions and didn't agree on their prejudice.

"Scourgify won't be enough to clean you off his filth" Rodolphus sneered. "What a shame"

"He's ten times the man you can't even dream of being!" I growled at him. "Filthy is your mother!"

"How dare you?!" Bellatrix screamed. "Blood-traitor scum!"

Before I could brandish my own wand, a flash of blue light blinded me, a loud bang filled my ears and I felt myself fly back, my chest aching as if I had been kicked. I slammed into a wall, falling into a table that broke, taking a crystal vase and painting with me. I groaned as I pushed the painting off of me.

"Sirius, lower your wand right now!"

"Leave her alone!"

"He's another blood-traitor… Friends with Lupin boy and snogging muggle-born girls!"

"Are you alright?" Andromeda asked worriedly, helping me stand up.

"Yeah" I mumbled, frowning at the pain on my head.

"You two are a disgrace to this family!" Walburga said angrily, looking between me and Sirius. "You shall act as a Black, or be disowned!"

"I am not a Black! And I would never want to be a Black if it means being a spiteful, heartless, horrible person like you" I said.

She pulled her hand back and slapped me hard. My face turned with the impact, my cheek stinging specially as the blood started to flow to it.

"Stop!" Andromeda protested.

"Don't touch her" Sirius growled.

He got in front of me and pointed his wand to his mother.

"You're a disgrace to this family, boy" she sneered. "I'm ashamed to have you as son"

"Not as horrified to have you as mother" Sirius sneered back.

"How dare you!"

Andromeda grabbed his arm and mine and I felt the pulling sensation of apparating, the world twisted and became a blur and I closed my eyes. We landed on the floor and I opened my eyes, wincing as I raised my head.

"Ella, are you alright?" Sirius asked anxiously, kneeling beside me.

"Yeah" I mumbled.

"I'm so sorry…"

"Sirius, get your things, quickly" Andromeda said.

He looked at me for a long moment before turning and running away. I looked around, recognizing the foyer of Walburga's house, in Grimauld Place. Andromeda helped me up, eyeing me with tears in her eyes.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have taken you to that house. It's all my fault" she mumbled.

"Of course not" I protested.

"It is, you only went there to help me… What a mess I've done"

"Hey, I didn't really want anything to do with them anyway" I shrugged and put my hand in my forehead. "Ouch"

I looked at my hand and saw blood. My cheek was still throbbing from Walburga's slap, and I wondered if mother would be able to heal it for me, or if I would still have a scar or bruise when I returned to Hogwarts. The house-elf appeared and scowled at us.

"We have no need for you, Kreacher" Andromeda told him, quite harshly.

The house-elf turned and walked away, muttering under his breath. Sirius came down the stairs, carrying his trunk and a suitcase. Andromeda took the suitcase, and grabbed his hand. I held onto his arm as she apparated us to the outside of my house. The Potter manor had wards, so it was impossible to apparate inside except if you were a Potter. We walked to the door, and I opened it.

"Hooky!" I called.

Hooky appeared in front of us and gasped when he saw me.

"Miss is hurt. Hooky will help Miss Ella, what do Miss need?" he squeaked.

"It's fine, Hooky, take Andromeda to my room and get Sirius a room" I told him. "Where are my parents?"

"Master Potter and Mrs. Potter is not home, Miss, do you want Hooky to get them?" he asked.

"No, it's fine" I waved him off.

I took Andromeda to my room myself, while Hooky got Sirius settled. Of course, not even five minutes later, Sirius was knocking on my door. Andromeda wasn't good with healing spells and of all she tried, the only one that worked was the one to stop the pain. I told her to get a room and empty my bag from her things. I pressed a cloth to the wound on my hairline, trying to stop the bleeding, but it wasn't working. Hooky got me some ice at Sirius' request, and he wrapped it in a handkerchief before gently pressing it to my cheek.

"I'm sorry" he whispered.

He was kneeling on the floor before me, and rested his hand on my knee.

"It's not your fault, Sirius" I said. "Do not ever apologize for them"

"I should have stopped her" he shook his head. "I saw it coming"

I frowned and cupped his face with my free hand. He looked up from my cheek to my eyes, his frown softening.

"She did that to you, didn't she?" I asked softly.

He looked away.

"You're safe here, she won't ever hurt you again" I promised him.

"You're really great, you know that?" he smiled up at me. "Defending Remus like that… helping me…"

"You're helping me too" I said, and his eyes flickered to my cheek, shifting the ice a bit.

He rested his chin over his hand on my knee and squeezed my knee gently. Andromeda came back and sat in an armchair, playing with her bracelet.

* * *

"Ella?" I heard mum call some time later.

"Ella!" dad called urgently.

They both burst into my room, and dad sighed in relief when he saw me. Sirius raised his head and dad looked from him to my cheek, where, as Sirius lowered the ice, was a handprint. His eyes narrowed on my cheek, and then he glared at Sirius. Sirius scrambled up as dad advanced and Andromeda stood up in alarm.

"Dad, no!" I said, standing up as well. "Of course it wasn't him!"

Dad looked at me and I shook my head. He sighed, threw Sirius an apologetic look and approached me. He gently pushed me back down on the bed, and mum sat beside me, evaluating the wound on my head. I smiled weakly at James, standing by the door with a scowl.

"Who, Ella?" mum asked.

I stared at her. I had never heard that tone. It was cold and hard, and it didn't sound like her at all.

"Who?" she urged.

"Rodolphus used the Knockback Jinx" I muttered. "I fell on a crystal vase and a painting fell over me"

"Ella" Sirius protested quietly.

Mum looked at him and back at me.

"Ella?" she asked, her voice softer.

"My mother slapped her" Sirius said quietly.

Mum clenched her jaw and took the bloody cloth from me, using a spell to clean it and pressed it back gently. Dad muttered under his breath, pacing and growling.

"Andromeda and Sirius helped me" I said quietly. "I told them they can stay"

"Of course" mum nodded to me and smiled at them. "You're welcome here. Thank you for helping Elladora"

"I owled Ted" Andromeda said. "So he could come take my things before I go back to Hogwarts"

"This is the last straw!" Dad snapped. "I'm sorry Dorea, but I cannot endure that damned family anymore!"

"I know" mum muttered. "I'll talk to Walburga"

"Why?" Sirius asked nervously.

"To tell her to leave you and my daughter alone" mum said fiercely. "Bitch"

"Mum!" I gasped at her language.

"Sorry" she smiled sadly.

Dad took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"What happened?" Dad asked, calmly.

"My brother told Bellatrix about Ella and Remus" Sirius said.

"They said awful things about Remus, dad!" I said. "And when I defended him, they told me I would be disowned for being a blood-traitor. I snapped at Rodolphus when he insulted Remus, he must have jinxed me… Walburga slapped me when I said I didn't want to be part of that family because… they're horrible, mum"

"I know, darling" she said softly, sniffing.

"Sirius defended me" I said and mum beamed at him, making him blush. "Andromeda had to apparate us out of there"

"Walburga is probably blasting you three off her beloved tapestry" dad said and rolled his eyes.

"Did you get a room, mate?" James asked.

"Yes, Hooky gave me one at Ella's request" Sirius said.

"You'll stay as long as you need" mum told him.

"Thank you, Mrs. Potter" he smiled.

"You as well, Andromeda" mum told her. "But I think you will prefer staying with your fiancée"

"I will stay for the rest of the holiday, if that's alright" Andromeda said softly.

"More than alright!" I said smiling. "You'll keep me company while the boys have their fun"

* * *

Mother sent an howler to Walburga, telling her to go to hell and to stay away from me and Sirius. She told her Remus was as wonderful as Sirius, but Walburga would never learn to appreciate people because of her foolish prejudices. Walburga sent a howler back, roaring about disloyalty, dishonor, disgrace, shame and blood-traitors. Sirius was disowned and she told him he could forget he had a family because she would forget about having such disappointment as son. Sirius didn't seem bothered. He was happy he would stay with us on his summers and holidays. Ted came to visit Andromeda and while the couple walked around the garden's father called me to his office.

"Yes, father? Hooky said you wished to see me" I said entering his study.

He looked up from the document he was reading and smiled at me. He looked weary, tired. He gestured to the loveseat on the corner of the room, and I sat down. He took something from one of his drawers. He walked to me, with a small wooden box in his hands, and sat beside me. He gave me a smile and opened the box. Inside, there was a red velvet bag, and he took it, turning it on his hand. A gold bracelet fell onto his hand and he dangled it in front of me. The bracelet was beautiful. It was all gold with tiny colorful jewels on it. It had five circle pendants; the centered three had images of men. The gold was old, but still shone, and around the images of men letters were vanishing.

"Do you like it?" he asked.

I looked up from the bracelet to him and nodded.

"I offered it to your mother after we married, but she refused" he chuckled looking down at the bracelet. "She agrees with me that you should have it"

"Really?" I asked and looked back at the piece of jewelry. "Why don't you give it to her?"

"It has passed down my family for centuries" he said taking my hand and clasped the bracelet on my wrist. "Do not ever take it off, Ella" he said seriously. "It will protect you"

"You put protection charms on it?" I asked.

"No… It was made with them, centuries ago" he smiled and kissed my knuckles. "It's not very Slytherin, but…"

"It's beautiful, dad" I said. "Thank you"

"Remember, do not ever take it off, it will protect you"

* * *

**May, 1975**

"Why didn't you tell me?" Remus asked, scowling at me.

I paused, the rest of the team stopped as well, looked at him with a frown and continued the walk back to the castle. I sighed, taking off my gloves and untied my hair as I walked to Remus.

"James told you?" I asked.

"No, Sirius was raging on about Regulus and let slip what happened"

He cupped my face and eyed me. Almost a month had passed after the incident with the Blacks, and I had asked James and Sirius not to tell Remus because he would be upset. I knew one of them would let it slip sometime, I just hoped it wouldn't be so soon.

"I'm fine, Remus, it was no big deal" I said smiling up at him.

"No big deal?" he frowned and pulled my fringe back, I sighed as he traced the faint scar on my hairline. "You got hurt, because of me, again"

"Remus, I love you, but this self-loathing is getting on my nerves" I said frowning at him. "It's fine, I didn't consider them family, it caused Sirius to finally get free from them, and no damage was done"

"You're amazing" he chuckled.

"And that's why you love me" I smirked.

He nodded and kissed me softly. I let my broom and gloves drop, wrapped my arms around his neck tightly, pressing my body to his. He wrapped his arms around my waist and lifted me up, making me giggle against his lips. I wrapped my legs around his waist. He grunted, shifting his arms to wrap around my thighs to hold me, and deepened the kiss. I ran my fingers through his shaggy hair, and whimpered. I pulled back and kissed along his jaw.

"We're in public" he mumbled.

"So?" I whispered in his ear. "It's more exciting" I giggled.

"You are a little minx" he grumbled.

"It's you who has blocked all my advances"

"We were in the library"

"Such a good boy" I teased as he set me down.

He kissed me, this time his hands were free to run up and down my sides and he gently brushed his fingertips against the underside of my breasts. I pulled back from his lips and looked into his eyes.

"You're being a tease… again" I whispered.

"Is the password to your common room still 'Elizabeth Burke'?" he asked, his eyes darkening.

As I stared into his eyes, my lips curving up, I realized we were two days away from the full moon, and Remus usually acted more passionately during this time…

"What about your common room?" I asked.

"Password is Wattlebird"

* * *

"The boys" I gasped.

We fell into a bed, that I guessed it was his, with him on top of me, his shirt halfway off and him pulling mine open.

"Late practice, Peter has detention, Frank stays in the library until curfew" he mumbled into my neck.

"Great" I mumbled, pushing his shirt off and throwing it away.

He nibbled and sucked on my neck, and had a hard time opening my bra's clasp while I undid his belt. He groaned in irritation, and I gasped as he ripped it off. I looked down at the ruined lace and satin and looked back up at him. His dark eyes stared into mine and as my lips curved into a smirk, he smiled. He kissed me deeply, his hands cupping my breasts. I moaned, and grabbed his ass, pulling him against me, my moan getting louder as he was pressed deliciously where I wanted him. He lowered his hands, pulling back from my lips, our heavy breaths seemed loud in the quiet room, and grabbed my thighs. I wrapped them around his hips and his hands trailed up as he kissed down my neck and collarbone.

"I want to touch you" he whispered hotly.

"Sweet Merlin" I moaned, my nails digging into the fabric of his trousers.

He pushed my skirt up, and hooked his fingers on the lace waistband of my knickers and slowly pulled it down. I unwrapped my legs from him as he pulled it lower down my legs, his lips leaving hot, wet kisses down my chest and stomach. I opened my eyes, and saw him throwing my knickers on his trunk, and I giggled, sitting up to pull my shirt off.

"Hm, hm, maybe McGonagall was right" I said smirking. "I am a bad influence on you"

"Terrible influence" he chuckled, undoing the fly of his trousers.

He grabbed me by the thighs and pulled me down the bed to him, making me squeal, but his lips covered mine, silencing me. He pushed my skirt up, and grabbed my ass, growling into my mouth. My body felt like it was on fire when I heard that animalistic noise. He grinded himself against my thigh as his finger gently brushed against the thin trail of hair, making me whimper. He slipped his finger along my slit and I pulled back from his lips, throwing my head back, clinging to his shoulders. He slowly stroked me, kissing my neck so softly.

"Oh" I breathed. "Remus… please"

"Shh" he whispered into my ear.

"I need you" I said, reaching and pressing his finger harder against me. "OH, Merlin!"

He groaned, and with two more strokes he slipped his finger inside me. I gasped, arching my body. He pumped in and out, and although it was very good, it was not enough. I must have said something, because he chuckled and slipped another finger inside me.

"Yes!"

"Does it feel good?"

"Hell, yes!"

He parted his fingers inside me, and while there was an uncomfortable sensation of being stretched, all I could focus on was the fact that his fingers curled and something exploded inside me. It was much better than the other times we touched for pleasure. It was amazing.

"Shhh" he chuckled and kissed me.

Damn, I was crying out and hadn't realized it. He pulled his fingers out of me as we continued to kiss and I pulled him closer, wrapping my legs around him. I tugged at his trousers and boxers, and pulled back from the kiss.

"Ella, we shouldn't…"

"If you stop, I'll tie you to this bed and have my wicked way" I said.

His eyes darkened, his lips parting as he moaned softly and buried his nose on my neck as I continued to pull the last articles of his clothing down his legs, and then used my feet to pull it down. We couldn't wait, so the trousers and boxers stayed around his knees, because his hot, hard shaft brushed against me, the slickness causing him to slide against along my slit, and he lost control. He kissed me hard, and supporting his weight on one arm, he held my hip tightly. I gasped and whimpered into his mouth when he suddenly invaded me, causing a sharp pain to shoot through my lower abdomen.

"Holy… Fuck" he mumbled against my lips, his hold on my hip tightening.

He pulled halfway out and thrust back in, and my arms tightened around him.

"Remus" I gasped. "Wait"

He stilled, and opened his eyes to look into mine. His dark eyes showed me how overwhelmed he was.

"Stay still, just a moment" I whispered.

"God… sorry" he breathed and kissed the corner of my eye.

He kissed the lonely tear away, and stayed still like I asked. The pain slowly stopped, I was still uncomfortable, but the strange feeling of being full was good.

"Ella… I can't" he gasped burying his head on the crook of my neck.

I ran my hands down his back and grabbed his ass, pulling him closer. He groaned, and pulled out to slide back in slowly. He was breathing heavy, and let go of my hip. The light throbbing on the area told me he had probably bruised me, but I didn't care. I kissed his neck, moaning softly as he pulled back and slid back in again. He moaned, and gasped. He gripped the sheets tightly, pressing his face into my shoulder as he pulled almost all the way out and thrust back in hard. I gasped. Pain and pleasure battling inside me. He pounded into me, pinning me to the bed with each thrust and just as pleasure started to win the battle, he shuddered, gasping expletives and slowed down considerably. He collapsed on top of me, breathing heavy against my shoulder. I slid my hands up his back and ran my fingers through his matted hair, his body on top of mine stopping our slick skin from cooling.

"Sorry" he mumbled into my flesh.

"It's alright" I said quietly, smiling a bit.

"No, it's not" he said, pulling back and supporting his weight off of me. He looked down at me with a frown. "I ruined it"

"Don't say that" I said cupping his cheek. "I quite liked it, and we can go again, soon" I grinned.

He shook his head and kissed me softly. He gently pulled out of me, and rolled over so he was on his back and I was across his chest. I rested my chin against his sternum, feeling his strong heartbeat underneath me.

"Can I ask you something?" I said softly.

"Of course" he smiled.

"It's about your… condition" I said hesitantly and he frowned. "Are you always going to be this passionate on the week before the full moon? I quite like it" I grinned.

"That's not funny" he deadpanned.

"I enjoy it, why is it not funny?"

He covered his face with his hands and rubbed his eyes, letting out a deep sigh.

"I lost control… When… back there… All I could think of was marking you as mine, my mate" he whispered. "That's monstrous. Not funny"

"I find it sexy" I giggled and he gave me a disbelieving look. "If you want, I can tie you to the bed and have my wicked way with your body so we're even"

"You're incorrigible" he said, his lips twitching.

"Let's have a bath" I said. "Clean up and relax"

"Are you alright?" he frowned, caressing my cheek.

"A bit uncomfortable, but I'm fine" I said and kissed his lips softly before getting up, smoothing my skirt down. "I might be ready for that second round after that bath!" I called over my shoulder as I walked into the bathroom.

"Incorrigible and unquenchable!" he chuckled, rushing to follow me.

* * *

"Remus!"

I groaned and buried my face into the warmth beneath me.

"Come on, mate, wake up!"

Remus groaned and I blinked the sleepiness off my eyes. I looked around and gasped. A boy with dark hair, pale skin and… huge ears, was standing a few feet away, his hand covering his eyes and his cheeks bright red. I pulled the red duvet over our bodies and shook Remus. He groaned and rubbed his eyes.

"Dammit, Frank?" he asked frowning.

"Ahn… James and Sirius are in the common room, updating Peter on the practice and playing exploding snap, so you might want to… do something about this" the boy, Frank, said awkwardly, his hand still over his eyes.

"Shit, we dozed off!" I muttered looking around for my clothes.

Remus threw me my shirt and knickers and stumbled into the bathroom for my skirt while pulling on his trousers. I put on my socks and grabbed my tie from one of the other beds, and quickly slipped on the skirt when Remus returned with it. He left his shirt unbuttoned, shoved his tie into his pocket, pulled the curtains around his bed to hide the unmade bed, and grabbing a book he dragged me out of the room.

"Thanks, Frank!" he called back.

He took me upstairs instead of down, and after passing the sixth year dormitory he stopped.

"We wait for them to go to the room and then we get out" he whispered. "I'll come back and say I had an Astronomy essay"

I nodded and leaned against the wall as we waited for my brother, Sirius and Peter to go to their dormitory. I smiled up at Remus and he fixed my tie while I buttoned his shirt up. When I finished, I grabbed him by the collar of it and pulled him down for a kiss. He wrapped his arms around me and smiled against my lips.

"I really loved tonight" I whispered.

"Me too" he said grinning goofily.

I pecked his lips and we stayed in silence as we heard three pair of footsteps coming up, familiar laughter and voices. A door closed and we rushed down to the common room and out through the Fat Lady portrait, and to the staircase.

"I'll be fine" I said turning around to him. "Go"

"Are you sure? I can accompany…"

I kissed him and turned around, rushing down the staircase, hoping I wouldn't get caught on my way to the dungeons.

* * *

**REVIEW!**

**xoxo Luuh**


	4. Chapter 4

**Summer, 1975**

"Have any of you spoken to Remus?" I asked.

James and Sirius looked at each other, back at me and slowly shook their heads before focusing on their breakfast. I frowned and looked down at my plate, pushing around the food.

"Ella?" mum asked worriedly.

"Excuse me… I'm not hungry" I muttered, standing up.

My parents frowned as I exited the room, and the boys continued staring at their food. I went to my room, sat on my desk and unfolded Remus' latest letter. He had been short, telling me he was fine, he hoped I was alright, asked about Sirius and James and even Andromeda's wedding. That was it. The letter had been the only answer to my last three letters. A couple weeks before summer, Remus had been tense, hesitant… distant. And now he barely wrote.

"Ella?" mum asked softly, knocking on my door.

"Come in" I called, folding the letter and putting it back on my drawer.

She entered, closing the door behind her, and sat on my bed.

"Are you alright dear?" she asked.

"Yes, I just… Remus seems strange… And I don't know what happened" I shrugged.

"Do you wish to see him? He can come here"

I knew the full moon was next week.

"No, mum, I think he had family visiting" I lied, frowning at my folded hands on my lap.

"Well, do you wish to go see him?" she asked.

"I can't invite myself over" I mumbled. "Leave it, mum, I'll talk to him once his family is gone… They're muggles, I wouldn't want to frighten them"

"Alright" mum sighed. "I feel like there's more to it, but you don't want to speak to me"

"It's nothing, mum, really" I said.

"Right" mum smiled, stood up and walked to me. "Teenage drama as people say?" she asked cupping my cheek.

"Yes" I smiled.

"Alright. If you need anything…"

I nodded she kissed my cheek and she left. I walked to my bed and sat on the edge of it, playing with the hem of my dress. There was a knock.

"Mum, really, I'm fine!" I said rolling my eyes.

"It's me"

I looked up and saw Sirius poking his head in. I smiled at him and nodded, so he stepped in.

"Do you want to go to Diagon Alley?" he asked. "James and I are going"

"Mum let you two go alone?" I frowned.

"We'll just pop in and out… Peter is waiting for us there, he'll spend a couple days here"

"Is Remus coming too?" I asked.

"Ahn… no" he looked down at his shoes.

"Oh"

"Sorry"

"It's fine…"

"James asked if you wanted to go… If you apparate us there, we'll have more time to look around than if we floo" he said.

"I should have known there was a motive for my brother to let you invite me" I rolled my eyes.

"James has second motives" he said smiling. "I would like you to come"

"You're pitying me, because I'm alone and bored"

"No…"

"Fine, I'll go" I said standing up.

"Okay" he said, turning around.

"You know what happened to Remus, don't you?" I asked.

He stopped with his hand on the knob but didn't say anything or looked at me.

"Was it something I did?"

He turned around and frowned. I wiped my eyes and rolled my eyes.

"Merlin, I should be ashamed, acting like a baby" I chuckled mirthlessly.

"No… It's nothing you did" he muttered.

"Then?" I asked frowning. "Something I didn't do?"

"No"

"Is he going to break up with me?"

"I…" he hesitated and frowned down at his shoes, shifting uncomfortably. "I don't know"

I nodded and sighed.

"I'll be downstairs in a moment, I'll just get some money to go to Quality Quidditch Supplies"

"I'm sorry" he mumbled and walked out.

* * *

"Nice gloves" James said, looking at the gloves I had just bought. "Did you see the new broom?"

"Really, James, I'm not going to waste my time admiring it. I'm not buying a broom for my last year, that's a waste" I rolled my eyes.

"So, no Quidditch career?" Peter asked, looking at the new quaffles and bludgers.

"No, I'm going to work at the Ministry" I said, walking to the door.

"Your dad will be proud" Sirius said.

We walked out of the shop, Sirius had to drag James away from the display window that had the new broom. As we walked to Sugarplum Sweets Shop, James insisted that I buy him the broom.

"No, ask dad for money" I frowned at him.

"But you have it!" he protested. "You know how hard it is to get father to come…"

"I don't carry that kind of money, James" I said amusedly.

"Gringotts is right over there, you have your own vault and access to it" he said.

"You're too spoiled"

"First blood-traitors and now money-beggers, oh my, how the Potter family has fallen"

I turned and glared at Bellatrix. James stepped forward, opening his mouth to retort, but I pulled him back, almost behind me and pulled my wand from my pocket.

"I guess that's what happened to those that are rightfully disowned" she sneered, looking between Sirius and I.

"I'm not missing anything of that damned family" Sirius snapped.

"Ungrateful prat" she snapped.

Sirius pulled his wand but I grabbed his arm.

"Stop" I whispered. "Don't, you're underage"

He sighed and lowered his arm.

"Let's go, she isn't worth our breath or time" I said.

"Blood-traitor!" she yelled as we walked away.

People stopped and stared, and I sighed. News would travel fast and soon everyone would be speaking about the Blacks and Potters.

* * *

**September 1st, 1975**

"You won't talk to me!" I snapped.

"What do you want me to say?" he muttered.

I frowned down at him, sitting on the compartment's seat, looking down at his hands on his lap, and shook my head.

"It's over, isn't it? You just aren't man enough to say it to my face!" I said angrily.

"Yes" he deadpanned.

"And you won't tell me why?"

"No"

I bit my lower lip, opened the compartment door and walked out, dodging a Hufflepuff girl and her boyfriend.

"Ella?"

I continued walking, my vision blurred from the tears, and continued down the car, rushing to get to the Slytherin area so no one would bother me.

"Ella!"

I bumped into someone and the person held my arm to steady me.

"Sorry… Are you alright?"

I wiped my eyes and frowned at Lily Evans, the girl my brother chased all year with no success. She had a prefect's badge, like the one Remus' was wearing, and her long red hair was in two braids. Her green eyes left my face to look at something over my shoulder.

"Ella?"

I turned and frowned at Sirius.

"Leave me alone!" I snapped at him.

"What happened?" he asked frowning.

"You know what happened very well! Sod off!"

"Black, I think it's best if you leave her be, she doesn't want to talk to you" Evans said.

"But…"

I opened the compartment between us, almost slamming the door on his face and entered, closing the door and the blinds. I heard them talking outside, and after a few minutes, there was a soft knock on the door. Evans poked her head in and gave me a small smile.

"Can I come in?" she asked.

"Yeah" I muttered.

She sat across from me, and extended me a handkerchief. I smiled and took it, wiping my eyes. As I twisted the fabric in my hands I saw there were initials in the corner of the handkerchief. SOB. Sirius.

"He was worried about you" she said.

"Hm"

"It's actually really strange, Black and Potter – I mean, your brother – are never worried about anything"

"They are arrogant, pompous, obnoxious gits" I muttered.

"They are" she said rolling her eyes.

"I'll miss watching you making James miserable" I smiled.

"You've seen?" she asked frowning, her cheeks turning red.

"The whole school has seen my pathetic brother begging for your attention, Evans" I chuckled.

"Call me Lily"

"Lily. My brother will be jealous"

She rolled her eyes.

"So… what happened?" she asked softly. "I promised Black I would see if I could help"

"It was nothing, really" I said, looking out the window.

"I thought you were with Remus" she said. "I didn't know you and Black…"

I frowned at her.

"I'm most definitely not with Sirius" I said. "And I guess I'm not with Remus anymore" I shrugged.

"Oh" she frowned. "I'm sorry"

"It's fine"

It was not fine.

"Boys are gits" she said smiling comfortingly. "You're on your last year, you'll find a man after school and you'll laugh about all of this"

"You make it sound so simple, I almost pity you for being on your fifth year and having to endure this for the next three years" I chuckled.

"If your brother didn't exist my life would be much easier, but other than that… I don't mind" she smiled.

"I never thought I would find someone that would understand how I feel about my brother" I grinned. "I think we'll get along very well, Lily"

"I never thought I would find another Slytherin nice besides Severus" she smiled. "I'm sure we'll get along as long as you aren't very Slytherin-y"

I laughed and she pulled a bag of muggle candies from her pocket for us to share.

* * *

**October, 1975**

"Hey"

I arched an eyebrow at James as he slid into the available space next to me.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"You looked like you needed some company" he said, reaching for a goblet and the jar of pumpkin juice.

_Don't say._ I've been sitting alone since I returned for my last year.

"I don't need your pity, James" I muttered, pushing the food around on the plate. "You can go back to your table and sit with your friends"

"Why don't you come back to sit with us?" he suggested smiling softly.

"You know very well why I don't sit with you anymore"

"Ella, he's feels terrible for what happened"

"No he doesn't. It's all his fault"

"Come on, please, sit with us… Maybe you'll be able to be friends at least and I won't have to be torn between you two"

"You shouldn't have to be torn, James, I'm your sister and he dumped me" I grumbled. "Without any motives"

"He had his reasons" he sighed.

"Did he tell you?" I asked frowning at him. "If he did, please, enlighten me"

James stared into my eyes and sighed before looking down at the table.

"I can't" he said quietly.

"Then go back to your table and your friends, I'm fine" I said looking back down at my plate. "Tell Sirius that Andromeda wrote to me with good news… She's pregnant"

"That's nice"

"Just go" I sighed. "Really, I'm fine, you can stay with your friends"

"I don't mind being with you"

"But you would rather be with them. Go"

* * *

"No, Crabbe, I'm not going out with you" I said rolling my eyes at the chubby boy.

"I heard you finally got rid of the half-blood" he said smirking.

I would rather die single than go on a date with you.

"We broke it off, not that it's any of your business" I said entering the Great Hall. "My answer is still 'no', goodbye, Crabbe"

I walked away from him and sat between James and Sirius at the Gryffindor table. James, Sirius, Peter and Remus stopped talking and eating, looking at me curiously.

"Crabbe is annoying me, can I sit with you?" I asked.

"Yeah, of course!" James said and smiled, passing me a plate with vegetables.

"Thanks" I muttered, keeping my eyes on my plate.

"So, what was Crabbe doing?" Sirius asked.

"Asking me out" I mumbled. "Didn't understand I wouldn't go out with him even if he was the last man on earth"

"Git" James grumbled. "As if you would go out with him, after all the rumors…"

"Rumors?" I asked, looking up.

"Yeah" Peter said, looking happy to gossip. "People are saying that he and his friends are associating themselves with that dark wizard that has been giving the Ministry some trouble"

"The one responsible for the disappearances?" I asked. "Where did you hear that? I wasn't told anything"

"That's because you're an insider" Sirius said. "A Slytherin" he explained. "The rumors go through the other houses"

"Hm"

"What do you think?" Remus asked.

I looked at him and he gave me a weak, hesitant smile. I looked back down my plate, frowning.

"Although I agree Crabbe and his family are horrible people who would likely help that dark wizard, I think we should be more careful" I said. "If it was to judge, we could consider James and Sirius their allies"

"What?" Sirius and James snapped, scowling at me.

"Well, especially Sirius, but you too, James. You both are pure-blood wizards that think highly of yourselves and torture Severus Snape just because you can" I shrugged.

"Torturing Snivellus has nothing to do with dark magic or blood purity… We just like to prank him because he's a pathetic git" James argued.

"You're jealous of him" I teased.

"Me?!" he snapped. "Take that back! I am not jealous of Snivellus! What would I be jealous of? His greasy hair? Ew"

"Because he's friends with Lily" I rolled my eyes.

"Lily?" he frowned. "Since when are you on the first name base with Evans?"

"Please, don't be jealous" I chuckled. "Sirius sent her to talk to me and she's nice"

"You talked to her?" he asked Sirius and then frowned at me. "What did you say to her about me?!"

"Nothing!" I laughed.

"I should hand you over to Crabbe, because I just know you said something" he grumbled.

"And what would you do if you beloved sister became the next Mrs. Crabbe?" I asked, putting a hand on my chest dramatically. "Mrs. Elladora Cassiopeia Crabbe?" I said in horror.

"Bleh!" the boys said, scowling and then chuckled.

* * *

"So, do you want to go to Hogsmeade with us?" James asked.

Although it was very nice that he was asking me, and had been pulling me into his inner circle lately, I felt like he pitied me.

"No, it's fine" I said. "I'll go with Lily to Gladrags and then I'm meeting Andrew" I said.

"Andrew?" he asked frowning.

"Andrew Snowyowl" I said.

"Slytherin Captain?"

"Yes"

"Why are you meeting him?"

"Because he asked me out" I rolled my eyes.

"I thought you were never going to go out with Slytherins" he scowled.

"I said I wouldn't go out with Crabbe or boys like him"

"No, you can't go out with Snowyowl"

"Why not?" I cocked an eyebrow at him.

"Because he's a git"

"Every Slytherin is a git to you, James" I rolled my eyes and turned back to my essay.

"And 'Snowyowl'? What kind of name is that? Ridiculous" he said. "Besides you could do much better"

"Like Remus?" I snapped and sighed. "Sorry, I know he's your friend"

"Remus… is a nice guy, he never meant to upset you"

"Right" I said sarcastically.

"I'll get you a date if you cancel with Snowyowl"

I looked at him with a frown and rolled my eyes chuckling.

"First, I will not cancel without knowing who the date you would get me is… Second, I don't want to go out with Peter or other pathetic fourth year classmate of yours"

"Of course it's not Peter" he rolled his eyes.

"Then who?" I asked amusedly.

"Ahn…" he frowned, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Really, James, after what happened, you should think twice before letting me anywhere near your friends… It's awkward enough as it is after Remus"

* * *

"What are you doing?" I asked, frowning as Remus sat across from me on the library desk.

"We used to study together" he said, giving me a small smile.

"Yes… Before you dumped me and ignored me"

"Ella" he sighed, looking down at his book. "I'm really am sorry"

"No you're not" I muttered, continuing to write my essay.

"I am. I never meant to hurt you" he said. "You know that"

"From all the bruises from holding me tight, and that bite, the fact that you refuse to tell me what went wrong was what hurt"

He didn't answer, and I looked up. He was frowning down at his hands, his eyes sad.

"You could do better than me" he whispered.

"Tell someone else that, I don't buy it"

"You could… I… I realized that there were better people for you"

"Like who?" I scoffed. "You were the sweetest, greatest, cutest boy"

"I can't tell you"

I frowned at him and put my quill down.

"Who mentioned that stupid blood-purity issue in the family to you?" I asked. "That was it, wasn't it? They made you think I should be with some pure-blood wizard…"

"No, it's not that"

"Then give me something!" I snapped.

He stayed silent and I sighed, gathering my things to leave.

"My dad was fired" he muttered as I stood up.

I frowned as I looked down at him.

"It's really hard for him to find a job, because he had to leave jobs a lot before when I was younger and we had to move before people realized what I was… So his work history hasn't been the best… And he was finally happy with his job at the Daily Prophet. He was fired, with no reasonable motive. They said they were making cuts. But Cygnus Black is a great supporter of the paper, so, I figured he had him fired because of my relationship to you"

"I'm sorry" I said quietly. "I never thought they would do something to you or your family…"

"It's fine now… dad has another job, at the Quibbler" he smiled weakly.

I frowned again.

"Then what's the matter now?" I asked.

He frowned back at me and I knew he wouldn't tell me. His father wasn't the real reason.

"Fine, Remus" I sighed and walked away.

* * *

"Ella!"

I sighed and rested my head against the book I had been reading.

"Look… I have nothing against you, Sirius, but James and Remus in less than a week is enough" I said.

"I'm sorry" he said. "It's my fault"

I looked up at him, my frown showing my confusion.

"I know I shouldn't be speaking to you about Remus" he said. "Actually, I was specifically told not to" he continued, cutting me off. "But I feel bad, because… You two are miserable. He's guilty about what happened and you're mad and resentful. And it's not fair to him"

"James already gave me the 'Remus is a great guy, forgive him' speech" I sighed.

"No" he frowned and sat down beside me. "It's my fault he ended things with you"

"How?" I rolled my eyes.

He frowned down at his hands, shifting uncomfortably.

"My mother threatened him" he said quietly.

"What?" I gasped.

"My mother saw him at Diagon Alley with his mother, and made a suggestive comment about Remus' mother wellbeing"

"He should have told me!" I said frowning. "I would have helped! Dad would have helped Mr. Lupin to put wards on the house and…" I looked down at the bracelet he had given me. "We could have protected her" I said quietly.

"He didn't want to be the cause of more stress between the families" he said. "He didn't even tell James"

"Thank you, for telling me, Sirius" I smiled at him and squeezed his hand. "And it's not your fault. You're not part of that horrible family anymore, don't associate with them by blaming yourself"

His frown deepened and he said something quietly, I didn't catch.

"What was that?" I asked.

"That's not why it's my fault" he muttered and looked up at my face. "James told Remus that… That I… Ahn…"

"Spit it out" I chuckled.

"I had a crush on you" he blurted. "Since last summer. It's really, really silly, actually. It's nothing. But James let it slip to Remus, and Remus felt bad. And you know how he is, always putting himself down because of his… furry little problem, and because of the problems you had because of his blood status, so he convinced himself that it would be better to step aside… for me" he rolled his eyes. "What was really stupid. I admit I quite liked the idea, because if you noticed him, you could notice me and if he broke it off, I would have a shot… but… I know that sounds awful, I'm sorry. But then you distanced yourself from all of us because of what happened…"

"Sirius" I tried to make him stop.

"And I hated that it was because of me that you were unhappy…"

"Sirius…"

"But you went out with Snowyowl. He's a toerag, and you deserve better… I'll talk to Remus and…"

"Sirius" I snapped.

He snapped his mouth shut, finally.

"You should have stopped at 'I had a crush on you'. Because it is silly, Sirius" I frowned. "And… Letting Remus think you would be better than him for me? That's so selfish, it's worthy of a Slytherin. I don't want you to speak to Remus. I understand now why he did it, but I know things wouldn't be the same if we got back together, because he hurt me. And you all are idiots. James for blurting your secret, you for thinking it would be alright, and Remus for accepting it"

He scowled at me.

"Then…"

"If you weren't so childish, obnoxious, arrogant git, I would consider. And to top it all off, you're a fourth year – a mistake I won't make again – and James' best friend. Grow up, Sirius"

I gathered my things and stood up.

"You think so highly of yourself" I stopped as he sneered at me. "But you're just as bad. You laugh when we prank someone. You are arrogant and your ego is enormous. You're going out with gits because you were dumped and you don't want people to think you have a human heart and was hurt. You're trying to rub them on Remus' face, so, tell me, how are you better than me?"

I bent down to whisper in his ear.

"I'm better than you, because I will ignore you for the rest of the year and all our time together instead of spreading the word about how the great Sirius Black had a silly school girl crush on me" I sneered. "Goodbye, Black"

* * *

The rest of the year passed by quite smoothly. Except for the holiday. Sirius was now living at my house, so he came back with us for Christmas. James would stay with him, confused by the tension between me and Sirius and I had no company. I would stay in my room studying. I went to visit Andromeda, who was heavily pregnant, but Sirius would tag along. Remus and I were on speaking terms. Sometimes it was awkward as hell, but most of the time we were able to keep a friendly behavior. After our talk, Sirius became the epitome of hypocrisy, after saying I was rubbing gits on Remus' face. He would parade a girl around every week. His reputation of Hogwarts' cutest boy became Hogwarts' womanizer. Really, it would make me laugh. But it was quite insulting and infuriating that he would think that those brainless, common-looking, ordinary girls would raise jealousy in me. They were ridiculous, he and the girls.

* * *

**1976**

I was sitting with Lily, who wanted my help studying for her O.W.L.s, when we heard loud laughter and yelling. She looked up and snapped up, pulling her wand out of her robes. I looked at where she was going and cursed under my breath, following her. My idiotic brother had Severus Snape suspended on the air, upside down, his robes falling and revealing his thin, white legs and his underwear. Severus thrashed as if it would release him from the spell, but it was no use, it was actually making it look even more ridiculous, since he looked like a fish out of the water, thrashing about, desperate to be saved.

Lily pushed her way through the crowd.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" she shouted.

She pointed her wand to my brother and Sirius. Peter cowered behind them, and Remus' tensed, as he looked between her and his friends.

"Lily" I said warningly, pulling my own wand.

I did not disagree with her, but if she hexed my brother, I would have to hex her.

"Ah, Evans, don't make me hex you" James smirked.

He couldn't keep his mouth shut apparently.

"Take the curse off him" I said as Lily glowered.

"You think you're funny, but you're just an arrogant, bullying toerag, Potter. Leave him _alone_!" she snarled.

People chuckled at Lily's fierceness, but James didn't seem put out.

"I will if you go out with me, Evans" James said still smirking, and Sirius rolled his eyes, chuckling. "Come on, go out with me and I will never lay a wand on old Snivelly again"

"I wouldn't go out with you if it were a choice between you and the giant squid!"

James frowned, clenching his jaw, and rolled his eyes before waving his wand at Snape. Snape fell to the ground in a heap.

"There you go" James said frowning down at Snape as he struggled to get up. "You were lucky Evans was here, Snivellus – "

"I don't need help from filthy little Mudbloods like her!" Severus snapped, his face red with anger.

"Take that back!" I snapped, pointing my wand at him.

"How dare you?!" James roared advancing on him.

"Stop" Lily said.

We both looked at her and she stared at Snape with surprise, hurt and hate on her bright green eyes. She blinked and huffed.

"Fine" she said, putting her wand away. "I won't bother anymore…"

"I should hex him for what he said" James protested.

"You're not better than him, Potter!" she snapped. "You're an hypocrite, you make me sick!"

"I would never call you... that" he said softly.

She eyed him, as if wondering if he would or not, turned and walked away, stopping to gather the things she had left on the ground where we had been sitting. I sighed, and rushed after her, grabbing my things as well. I reached her as she walked across the courtyard to the castle.

"Lily…"

"I've defended him!" she said angrily, not stopping and I quickened my steps to keep up. "People warned me, told me how he treated students like me… I thought people were just judging him for being a Slytherin, for walking around with Mulciber and Avery… Is it true then?"

She stopped walking and turned to me. I hesitated. How many times I had seen my housemates mistreat other students for their heritage? Especially muggle-borns. How many times had I seen Mulciber and Avery make the lives of such students' hell? How many times had I seen, heard or been told about Severus Snape partaking on such activities? How many times I wondered why she was friend with him and why she was an exception to him?

"You can say it" she said more softly, her eyes tearing up.

"Yes…" I said hesitantly.

She shook her head, and started to walk again.

"Lily!"

I turned around and glared as Snape rushed, balancing books on his arms, to catch up.

"Lily! Wait!" he called.

She turned around and crossed her arms. He stopped before her and frowned at me, clearly irritated by my presence.

"I'm not leaving" I said to him. "And careful, I taught my brother all the hexes he knows"

"It's fine, Ella" Lily said.

"I'm sorry…" Snape started.

"Are you still going to be friends with people like Mulciber and Avery?" she interrupted and he frowned. "Do you know what they are? Do you know what they do? Do you want to join them?"

He opened his mouth and closed it without speaking, swallowing hard as he looked down at his books.

"I can't pretend anymore, Severus" she said. "You've chosen your way and I've chosen mine"

"No – Wait! I didn't mean to – "

" – to call me a Mudblood?" she finished, arching an eyebrow. "But you call everyone of my birth Mudblood, Severus. Why should I be any different?"

He didn't answer, looking at her with pleading eyes. She looked away and to me.

"Let's go" she said.

"I'm sorry!" Snape said desperately as we walked away, following us.

"I'm not interested!" she snapped, not looking back.

"I'm sorry! Lily!"

"Save your breath"

She continued up the staircase and while I followed her, so I could keep her company and maybe distract her. I looked back down, and saw Severus still there, watching her walk away from him, completely sorrowful. For a moment, I felt pity for him. What if he was like Sirius? Raised with those prejudices being hammered into him, raised to believe he was better than others because of his family... He had been Lily's friend, a good friend from what I gathered. But how could he be her friend, and act like that? I shook my head and continued to follow her.

* * *

Despite everything, between me and Remus, me and Sirius, James and Lily, in mid-February we found ourselves gathered in the Three Broomsticks for butterbeer on a Hogsmeade visit day.

"Did you get all your precious sweets?" Remus asked smiling.

"Yes" I said and gestured to the bag from Honeydukes.

"Mr. Flume must be rich now then" Lily chuckled.

Of course, Sirius and I ignored each other and Lily ignored James – even though he tried almost everything to get her to talk to him. But other than that, it was a lovely day.

"You left your whole allowance on the bookshop" I snorted.

"At least she won't get fat" Sirius commented, smirking at a girl from the other table.

"Fat is your mother, Black!" I snapped, feeling my face go red with anger.

How dare he?! I was not fat. I was perfectly fit. I was one of the most beautiful girls of school!

"That she is" he said looking at me with a grin.

I couldn't help but chuckle, because Walburga deserved it. And she was fat. He chuckled too and soon everyone was laughing, including Lily, who hesitated at laughing at a joke of someone's mother.

We were walking out of the Three Broomsticks, laughing as Peter imitated Slughorn. James had his arm slung over my shoulder – he had tried to do it with Lily, but she pushed him off – and Lily, a lightweight – giggly with a couple butterbeers – had her arm wrapped around Remus', as they talked about the other prefects.

"Padfoot, we have practice don't forget" James said.

"Padfoot" I scoffed as Sirius frowned at James. "What kind of nickname is that?"

"Because Sirius has shaggy black hair" Remus quickly answered. "A padfoot has shaggy black fur, and he's a dog" he smirked at Sirius.

"That he is" I rolled my eyes.

There was suddenly a scream, piecing the whole village and everyone on the street froze. A explosion followed, one of the shops reduced to crumbles. People started to run and scream for help, and we pulled out our wands.

"Go" I told James, tugging on his arm.

"What? We're not leaving you!" he protested.

"You're underage! Just go, get help!" I said pushing him, but he wouldn't budge.

"Watch out!" Remus said and used a defensive spell to block an attack.

Three men, with black cloaks and masks walked in our direction, attacking people that dared to go against them and exploding the shops' displays.

"Confringo!" I snapped, flicking my wand.

A blast threw one of the men back several feet and he fell unconscious. One of the others turned to me, and I felt James' tugging on my arm urgently, trying to pull me back or away… The man smirked and pointed his wand at me.

"Petrificus Totalus!" Lily cried.

He blocked the spell and flicked his wand.

"Lycacome!" he snapped.

A jet of red light hit me and I fell on the ground.

"Let's go!"

I grunted as someone picked me up, the sounds of battle all around me. People were crying, using hexes and curses, and things were exploding.

"You're gonna be okay" I heard James say soothingly.

I buried my face in his chest and let him carry me.

* * *

I groaned and raised my hand to shield my eyes from the bright light.

"Thank god"

I uncovered my eyes, flinching as my eyes adjusted and smiled at the boys surrounding me and Lily.

"What happened?" I asked.

They exchanged looks and Peter went to get Madame Pomfrey. Lily sat on the edge of the bed and took my hand patting it gently as she gave me a sad smile.

"What is it?" I asked nervously. "Why don't you say anything?"

"Ella…" James said soothingly.

"Is it my face?" I asked, reaching out and touched my cheek. It felt normal. "Do I have scars?"

"No" Sirius mumbled.

I looked between them, but before I could ask what happened, Madame Pomfrey pushed Sirius and James out of the way and took my pulse.

"Oh, dear, how do you feel?" she asked, smiling sadly.

"I feel fine. Shouldn't I?" I asked panicking. "Am I gonna die?"

"No, no, no" James said, shaking his head. "No, you'll be fine"

"Then what is wrong?" I asked.

Madame Pomfrey looked at James and then at Remus, who sat in a chair and ran his fingers through his hair in distress.

"Ms. Potter, you've been hit with the Lycacomia Curse" Madame Pomfrey said gently and patted my arm. "Do not worry, everything will be fine, we'll make sure you'll be alright"

I stared at her, blinking. No, she was wrong. I turned to James who was looking at me with concern and sorrow. I looked at Remus and he had his head in his hands.

"Lycacomia?" I asked quietly.

"Yes, dear" Madame Pomfrey said soothingly.

"As in…?" I shook my head, closing my eyes. "Are you sure?"

"By the incantation and the characteristics of the spell, yeah" Lily mumbled.

"They knew me" I mumbled and tried to stop the tears. "They knew about me and… Remus?"

He looked up at me, his face pale, his brow furrowed and his green eyes filled with worry and sadness, like everyone in the room. My eyes filled with tears and their images blurred. Someone approached as the first sob escaped and laid with me, embracing me gently, and smoothing my hair. As I held him tightly, I recognized his scent as Remus'.

* * *

I groaned and turned, my eyes fluttering open as I was unable to get comfortable. I saw someone sleeping in a chair by my side, and I smiled weakly as Sirius sat up straight.

"Do you need anything?" he whispered.

The room was dark so I guessed it was late into the night and everyone had left.

"Why are you here?" I whispered.

"None of us left… The others got beds, I wasn't fast enough, got the chair" he smiled.

"Thanks" I mumbled.

He took my hand and rubbed my knuckles with his thumb.

"We won't leave you, Cassie" he whispered. "We'll be there for you, you'll be fine"

"Cassie?" I smiled, fighting back tears.

"Well, as much as I like to call you Cassiopeia" he smirked. "It's not appropriate for the moment"

"You could have called me Elladora, or Ella"

"Only if you stop calling me Black"

"In your dreams… Black" I smirked.

"Alright, Cassiopeia"

I groaned, rolling my eyes. He chuckled softly, and continued rubbing my knuckles. It was a soothing gesture.

"When is the next full moon?" I asked quietly.

"Next week"

"Remus said he went to the Shrieking Shack" I whispered and swallowed hard. "What about me?"

"Dumbledore will talk to your parents and they'll figure something out, don't worry" he said softly.

"Don't worry?" I mumbled. "My life is over. I wanted to work at the Ministry, I can't… I wanted to have children some day, Andromeda has perfected the pregnancy glow and I'll never have that… I'll never have a boyfriend, a husband… I understand now why Remus was constantly worried and sad… So much was taken from him. Is not just a night of the month…"

He stood up and sat beside me, letting go of my hand and gently wiped my tears.

"Shh" he said soothingly and smiled down at me. "You're wonderful, Ella… And your life isn't over because of that. There's nothing wrong with you, just like there's nothing wrong with Remus. And if a guy can't see that, then… you're better off without him" he shrugged and I smiled. "Besides, you and Remus can get into an agreement. If you both reach thirty and haven't found anyone, you can marry each other!"

"Now we're completely perfect to each other?" I chuckled mirthlessly.

"You were perfect already" he said and kissed my cheek. "Now, rest… Everything will be alright. We'll figure it out"

* * *

"You'll be alright" mum said soothingly.

The tears in her eyes said the contrary. I nodded at her, fighting my own tears and she hugged me tightly. I looked at dad, who stood on the doorway, watching us with a frown. He looked weary.

I had spent the week mostly with Remus. He told me how it happened, how he usually felt, and what happened or what he thought it happened since he didn't remember. He had owled his father, and Mr. Lupin contacted my father. My father was grateful for the help, and Mr. Lupin would stay the night, with dad, making sure I wouldn't get out. We were using an old cellar, which was far away from the Manor, but still on our property. Apparently the Manor had not been the original house of the Potter family. There had been another manor before, closer to the cellar, but it had been burned to the ground. Dad said that if I looked for it, I would probably find debris from the old house in the middle of the forest that had grown around the cellar. Mother had been as terrified as I had been when I told her what Remus told me. Out of frustration for not having anything or anyone to attack, he attacked himself, biting and scratching, which caused his scars.

"Okay" mum sniffled, "Do you need anything else?"

"No, mum, I… I'm fine" I muttered looking around.

The walls were of solid rock, there was only a window but dad had sealed it. They had put a table in the corner, with food and water, and on another corner there was a blanket and several pillows. I wondered in what state the room would be when the morning came.

"Ok, I love you, darling" she said.

She kissed me on the forehead and walked out. I smiled sadly at dad and he gave me an encouraging nod, before following her out and closing the door. I heard them putting up spells from outside and I walked to the blanket. As I was sitting down, the pillows moved and I reached for my wand. I frowned as a black dog crawled out from the pile of pillows and walked to me. The dog was large, and completely black, his fur was shaggy and a bit too long for a domestic dog. I used Lumos, pointing my wand in his direction as he sat on his hind legs in front of me, since without light, it would be impossible to see him.

"Oh, no" I mumbled frowning at him. "What are you doing here? You shouldn't be here"

He walked to me and touched his nose to my hand before lying down with his head on my lap. I frowned. For a stray dog he had no self-preservation. I ran my fingers through his fur and looked at the door. Dad wouldn't open it. That is, if he heard me. He would think I was panicking and trying to escape.

"What am I gonna do with you?" I asked looking down at him. "This is the last place you should've sought refuge in, this is the least safe place for you"

The dog whimpered and looked up at me. I smiled down at him and scratched behind his ears. His tail wiggled happily, hitting my foot and I giggled as he panted, his tongue out.

"You're a silly dog, aren't you?" I chuckled.

He tilted his head to the side and after I scratched under his chin he laid back down, resting his head on my lap once again.

"I'm a werewolf" I mumbled, caressing him. "God… So many times I had assured Remus there was nothing wrong with it, and now I can't accept it…" I chuckled. "I wonder what would happen if I had children. Of course, I can't, but I remembered reading somewhere that when werewolves mate, they have cubs… Can you imagine? Would I have to give birth to cubs while human or during a full moon?" I laughed shaking my head as the dog huffed. "Yes, my thoughts have been wayward this week, I'm sure you can understand why"

I frowned as I realized I had been talking to a stray dog as if it would understand. I rolled my eyes at myself, still scratching behind his ears and running my fingers through his fur while we waited. He seemed really content there.

* * *

"Ella? Ella, honey?"

"Hm?"

"Wake up, darling"

My eyes fluttered open and I frowned at the black fur in my face. My frown deepened as I realized he smelt of cleanliness. I looked at my mum who was kneeled before me, she gave me a smile.

"What time is it?" I croaked.

"Seven"

"It's morning?" I asked looking beyond her at the open door, where morning light was seeping in. "It's morning!"

"Yes" mum grinned.

"Nothing happened, mum!" I said happily and hugged her. "I'm fine, I'm not a werewolf!"

Mum kissed my temple several times, holding me tight. I heard a bark and I pulled back chuckling. The dog was awake now, sitting as he watched us, his tongue out in what I thought was a dog smile. I wrapped my arms around his neck and when I pulled back I ruffled his fur and scratched behind his ear.

"We're fine!" I said excitedly.

"Where did he come from?" mum asked, reaching out to pet him.

"He was hidden in here, only came out after you locked me up" I said. "Kept me company"

"He looks like a nice dog"

The dog barked and jumped on me, licking my face.

"No, ew!" I said trying to get him off. "Get off, ah, disgusting!"

He seemed pretty happy with himself as I wiped his drool from my face.

"You're a bad dog" I said and he barked, as if agreeing. "Goof. That's it, I'll call you Goofus"

"Do you want to keep him?" mum asked amusedly.

"Can I?" I asked frowning. "I won't be here to take care of him until the summer"

"Yes, of course" she shrugged. "I was getting bored, we have nothing to do without you, James and Sirius around"

The dog barked again and jumped on my lap, resting his head on her knee, his eyes pleading for attention.

"You're a greedy one, aren't you, Goofus?" I asked scratching his side. "You'll be troublesome won't you?"

* * *

I was walking down the hallway with James and Sirius, when I heard snickering and I turned around. A few Gryffindors were snickering, and the only Hufflepuff present stared at us. We continued down the corridor, and entered the Great Hall. A lot of people stopped and stared and I frowned as we sat down. Gryffindor sixth years chuckled and I glanced around. The Ravenclaws were whispering and the Slytherins sneering. A boy stood up from his group, down the Gryffindor table and stopped chuckling long enough to let out a loud howl. I stared at him, and then another boy howled too. People laughed and I looked at Remus, sitting across from me.

"Ironic, isn't it? The half-blood lover became a half-breed" a Slytherin shouted and his friends laughed. "Disgrace!"

I stood up from my seat between my brother and Peter and walked out of the hall, keeping my head up despite the sneering, howling, laughing and teasing. I heard James snapping at someone, followed by Sirius' threats. Someone had told them. Someone had told them I had been cursed, but didn't tell them nothing happened. I looked down at my bracelet, twisting it around my wrist in comfort. It saved me. I understood now why dad had been so insistent on never taking it off.

"Some things should be kept in cages"

I turned and saw Snape smirking at me. I looked into his eyes, and I knew, it had been him.

"It was you" I deadpanned.

"Have you been disowned for what you are?" he asked. "Really, I pity your parents… Such shame they will have to face"

"I'm fine!" I snapped, "Nothing is wrong with me, the curse didn't work!"

"Oh, I know" he grinned.

I narrowed my eyes and then scoffing, I rolled them.

"Of course you did" I said. "It's your revenge for what happened with Lily… Good luck. Not only was your revenge unsuccessful, Lily knew what happened to me and after this, your chance of forgiveness has become… insignificantly small"

"Unsuccessful? I don't see anyone worshipping at your altar anymore, Potter. You won't have any friends for the rest of the year and these news might travel far enough to reach the Ministry… Weren't you planning on applying there?"

I pulled my wand and advanced on him.

"You're petty, pathetic, foul and loathsome!" I snapped, pressing the tip of my wand against his throat.

"Go on… Let's see who will hire you after being cursed with Lycacomia and attacking a student" he said calmly.

I wanted so bad to hex him across the corridor. Transfigure him into an insect just so could step on him. Make his ugly face even uglier…

I lowered my wand slowly and he grinned in triumph.

"Flipendo!"

I gasped as blue light came from over my shoulder and Snape flew back several feet into the air. I turned around and Sirius was frowning, but slowly his lips turned into a smirk as he lowered his wand.

"Well, I don't care about getting a job, Snivellus, so be careful"

* * *

I was sitting in the common room late at night, trying to finish my Ancient Runes essay for my class next morning, when Severus Snape walked into the common room, pausing when he saw me up.

"It's past curfew, Snivellus" I said, going back to writing my essay.

"That doesn't stop Lupin from sneaking out, does it?" he sneered. "I'm gonna find out what he's up to, and when I do, I'm gonna have all of you expelled"

"Good luck!" I said sarcastically.

He huffed and stormed out of the common room and I laughed. A few minutes later, the Red Baron came in through the wall shaking his head.

"Good evening, Baron" I said politely.

"Good evening, Miss Potter" he said and looked at my essay. "Very good, I believe you can get an E"

"Thank you" I smiled and cocked an eyebrow. "You seem amused…?"

"Oh, is just that Snape boy" he shrugged.

"What about him?" I laughed.

"He is truly a Slytherin, isn't he? Determined and clever, power-seeking… But that can make him as foolish as a Gryffindor" he sighed.

"Why is that?" I asked, focusing on my essay.

"Well…" the Baron looked around for any eavesdroppers. "Going out into the grounds, looking for the Lupin boy, in a full moon? Isn't very smart is it?"

I looked up at him with wide eyes.

"He went out of the castle?" I asked.

"Yes, just left" he said calmly.

"Baron!" I snapped, standing up. "Why did you let him?!"

"I'm a ghost!" he said defensively.

"Go tell Professor Dumbledore!" I called over my shoulder, running out of the common room.

I rushed down the corridors, up the stairs, thankful it was late enough I wouldn't meet prefects or teachers, and sneaked out of the castle. I rushed across the grounds, as fast as I could, feeling my feet ache as I stepped on pebbles. I had just reached the Whomping Willow, and I raised my wand as its branches slowly moved, like snakes coiling, ready to strike.

"Immo – "

I cried out as a branch hit me, sending me flying backwards. I landed on some bushes, tiny little cuts were made into my arms and face.

I groaned, waking up, blinking the blurriness away, as I scrambled up and looked around. I couldn't find my wand. I yelped as another branch almost hit me again, smashing into the ground and had to dodge another one as I stood, looking for my wand.

I would kill Snape myself.

It took me a few minutes to spot it and another few minutes to be able to reach it without being hit by the tree. I finally immobilized it, and rushed to the bottom of the tree and frowned at the hole that probably led into the tunnel Remus told me about. I gripped my wand tightly as I entered it, not expecting smooth, slick rocks and I slipped, sliding the rest of the way into the hole. Remus said something about it reminding him of a muggle story, Alice in… He seemed amused, I don't find this amusing at all, I though as I walked down the cold tunnel as quietly and fast as I could. My wand illuminated the way and after walking for almost twenty minutes, I saw what looked like a house's foyer, faint lightening.

"Severus?" I hissed.

I heard a loud growl and bit my lip.

"Snape?" I called louder.

I heard a howl, and I stumbled backwards, hitting a sharp rock with my shoulder. Something crashed and I the growling noises got louder. I turned and ran as fast as I could, tripping and stumbling as I didn't pay attention to there I was stepping. I heard it. I turned and blasted the rock wall, hoping to delay him. I crawled out of the hole and dodged the Whomping Willow's branches as I ran away from the passageway. I heard the howling again, and whimpered as I ran, lost, because I knew he had gotten away and was chasing me. My lungs burned and my legs were tired, my shoulder hurting and tripped one last time, barely catching myself. I turned, crawling backwards as the big, dark wolf slowly advanced snarling, his sharp teeth glowing in the moonlight, his muscles coiling. I looked into its eyes and saw they were the same green eyes that I had loved, darker than usual, almost impossible to discern from black. But they were his eyes.

"Remus" I said softly and whimpered as he growled louder. "Remus, it's me. Elladora. Remus, don't do this… Please"

The muscles began to relax and the growling sound got softer, until it stopped. He stared at me, and I was thankful I didn't have to look at those sharp teeth anymore, wondering the damage they could do. I gave him a small smile, and slowly stood. As I stepped back, he stepped forward and threw his head back howling. I gasped as he focused on me, and I turned to run. I screamed as I felt something tackling me from behind, taking me down. Pain. White hot searing pain that brought a blood curdling scream from my throat. Then it stopped. The growling noise stopped and there were animalistic yelps and the sound of jaws snapping. I lifted my head and saw a blur of black fur. Remus… I frowned as my vision got hazy but I could have sworn, it was a large, black dog… Goofus.

* * *

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" James asked trying to push me back to bed.

"James, stop it. Madame Pomfrey healed me, and I can go to my dormitory" I said, swatting his hands away.

"You have to stay here and rest" he protested.

"The wounds are healing" I said and took his hand. "Please, James… We have to go, before Remus comes… He would never forgive himself if he saw this… If we leave now, he won't have to know"

"Fine" he said crossing his arm. "But you're going to our common room, so we can keep you company and make sure you're alright"

I agreed begrudgingly. He wanted to carry me up the staircase, but I told him that not only it was unnecessary and stupidly pompous, my back was wounded, how would he hold me? He told me he would tell me more about how he got Snape back into the castle, apologizing for not seeing me near the Whomping Willow, probably knocked out. Dumbledore had found me, and somehow was able to take Remus back into the passageway at least, he stayed there.

I carefully lay on my side on the couch in front of the weakly lit fireplace and James sat at my feet, putting them on his lap.

"How is your back?" he asked softly.

"Madame Pomfrey told me that by the end of the day the potion will have healed it… But there probably will be scars, she says werewolf wounds are tricky" I mumbled.

"You were lucky you weren't bitten"

I had the worst luck when it came to lycanthropy.

"I was… It's such a blur. I could have sworn I saw another wolf… Or a dog" I rolled my eyes at myself. "I must have gone delirious from pain"

"Yeah, delirious" he agreed.

"You won't tell mum and dad, right? I already asked it of Madame Pomfrey and Dumbledore" I said, my eyes fluttering close.

"No, I won't tell" he said and sighed. "But you can't do this kind of thing anymore, Ella… You keep giving me these scares. Falling off your broom, cursed by a Death Eater, attacked by a werewolf… You'll make me go prematurely grey"

I smiled and lost the battle to exhaustion.

* * *

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	5. Chapter 5

**May, 1976**

I gently knocked on the door and heard him call me in. I stepped into the room hesitantly, looking around at the paintings staring at me.

"Please, have a seat, Elladora" Dumbledore said from behind his desk.

I glanced at Slughorn and McGonagall standing aside, and slowly sat on the comfortable chair in front of Dumbledore.

"If this is about the incident…" I started hesitantly, because I didn't know if the Heads of the houses were aware.

"This is about your parents" he said, folding his hands in front of him.

"Professor, I asked you not to! There really was no need!" I said, getting angry.

It had been two weeks since the full moon incident where I had gotten hurt. Remus didn't remember, no one told him as I asked, and Snape had kept his mouth shut.

"No, Elladora, it's not that" he said softly. "I'm afraid your parents have passed away"

I blinked and frowned.

"Passed away?" I asked slowly.

He sighed, glanced at the two professors and nodded slowly.

"I'm so sorry to have to inform you of this, with your N.E.W.T.s so close… I would like you to know that you shall have any help you need to deal with whatever you have to do, and if you wish I can reschedule you exams as it is an extraordinary case…"

"They passed away?" I asked again.

"Yes, dear" McGonagall said softly and sat on the chair beside me, reaching for my hands. "I know it's hard…"

"They were killed?" I asked, looking between her and Dumbledore.

Both had died.

"Yes, Elladora" McGonagall said.

"A great man and a wonderful woman! A tragic lost!" Slughorn said shaking his head.

"Who?" I asked, clenching my jaw and staring at the bowl of candies in his desk.

"Elladora…"

"Who?"

"It seems… Voldemort himself" Dumbledore said hesitantly. "Your parents were pure-bloods and very powerful, something Voldemort treasures… He was after something, your father told me he had asked it of him before…"

I nodded and raised my eyes to him, while McGonagall squeezed my hands comfortingly.

"What now?"

"They had a will prepared… I imagine you already were aware of this possibility. The houses, vaults, house-elves, jewelry and everything in the name of the Potter family has been left in your care until James seventeenth birthday, when it shall be shared equally. Your family's solicitor will meet you and explain everything you own and are responsible for now, and shall help you to manage everything until you've finished school…"

I turned to McGonagall, and with watery eyes she gave me a small smile.

"Does my brother know?" I asked quietly.

"No, we thought it would be best to speak to you before" she said softly. "He and Mr. Black are at quidditch practice"

"Sirius" I mumbled and turned to Dumbledore. "Sirius was staying with us, his family had disowned him…"

"As long as Walburga Black doesn't request for his return, I'm sure there won't be a problem" he said soothingly.

"The house-elves… Has someone notified them that they… died? Do the Blacks know? Are there arrangements being done…?"

"Do not worry" Slughorn said smiling softly. "The Minister himself offered to take care of the arrangements, he wishes to see you to ask your opinion on the matter"

I nodded, swallowed hard and stood up, smoothing down my uniform.

"Can I be excused now? I have… to talk to my brother" I said. "I shall return to discuss the meetings with the solicitor and the Minister and the… funeral"

Dumbledore nodded, eyeing me with concern and I turned and walked out of his office as fast as I could. I rushed through the castle, stopping by the courtyard to take a deep breath. My insides hurt with the sobs held back, and I shuddered, trying to remain calm. I slowed down, my mind wondering at all things I would have to do now as I walked to the pitch. I found Sirius and James on their brooms, playing around, and Peter was sitting on the ground, laughing at them. Remus was standing by the goal, leaned against the pole. I stood there, watching my brother laugh and smile… Remus must have noticed me, because I was snapped out of my thoughts as he got into my line of vision. He looked down at me with a frown.

"What is it?" he asked softly.

"What? " I mumbled.

"You've been standing there, staring at nothing for almost five minutes... I asked you what was wrong twice"

I looked over his shoulder at James, as he flew around in his broom – the damn broom he wanted in Diagon Alley last summer and father had given it to him as Christmas present – boasting, playing with his snitch as he talked to Sirius.

"I can't do it" I said and looked up at Remus. "I can't tell him"

"Tell what to whom?" he frowned.

I looked down at the ground and he gently took my hands, squeezing them.

"My parents were killed" I said quietly. "And I have to tell James"

"Oh my god" he whispered. "Ella, I'm so, so sorry"

I nodded and let him pull me into a hug. He smelled of Earl Grey Tea, old books, parchment and some woodsy scent – it was very comforting. But not enough. I slowly pulled back and saw the boys had landed, and while James and Sirius talked, James was looking at us. I pulled away from Remus and walked to James.

"Hey" he said smiling and eyed me and Remus. "What's going on?"

"James, I…"

The words died in my throat, burning. I swallowed hard, looked at the ground and back up at his hazel eyes. He had mum's eyes. My own lighter hazel blue-flecked eyes watered and he frowned, glancing at Remus before stepping forward, reaching for me.

"Mum and dad died" I choked out as he grabbed my arms. "They're gone"

He froze, looking down at me and his frown deepened. My tears finally fell and I sobbed as I watched my brother's eyes water. I hadn't seen him cry since he was a little boy.

"What? No" he mumbled.

"Voldemort… he wanted something from dad…"

The tears slowly ran down his cheeks and he dropped his hands from my arms, stepping back. Remus held me by the elbow and I slowly turned and buried my face in his shoulder. They were gone. Gone. I would never see them again. I wouldn't have them waiting at King's Cross, I wouldn't show them my N.E.W.T.s results, I wouldn't hear how proud dad was when I got my first job… They would never be there for the important things. Weddings, children…

Sirius rested his hand on James' back, his eyes wet as well and said something quietly to my brother. My brother's frown deepened, and he wiped the tears angrily, turning to glare at Sirius.

"It's your fault" he said.

Sirius stepped back in shock and I wiped my own tears, worried about what was going on in James' mind. He looked from Sirius to me, and his glare felt like it burned my skin. He hated me. He shifted his glare to Remus and then returned to me.

"IT'S YOUR FAULT!" he roared.

"James" I whispered.

"If you hadn't dated the half-blood, Sirius' bitch of a mother wouldn't have forced mother to speak up on their beliefs! They were murdered because you made them blood-traitors! It's your entire fault!"

"James…" Remus started.

James raised his wand, and Remus lifted his hands in surrender, watching him carefully. James clenched his jaw, huffed, turned around and grabbing his broom he walked away. Snapping at Peter who dared following him.

* * *

I slowly walked to the bed, and pulled the curtains back a bit. James was sitting in the center of his bed, still in his quidditch clothes, papers scattered around him and he fisted his hair as he read one. I slid next to him and rested my head on his shoulder, tugging his hand until he freed his hair. I held his hand as he leaned into me.

"I wrote to dad last week… I think it was about quidditch" he frowned and looked at the papers. "And I know they sent me a letter this week, and I… I can't find it"

"Last time I spoke to mum was about a stray dog that had disappeared" I said chuckling mirthlessly.

"A stray?" he frowned deeply.

"Long story" I sighed.

"They're gone… They won't be here to see you graduate, or get a job… But the first thing I thought was 'they won't be here for the game'"

"It's alright, James" I whispered. "I'll… I'll take care of things, I'll take care of you, and even Sirius, because of course he's staying… And we'll be alright"

He turned his face, shifting so he could bury his face in my shoulder and wrapped his arms tightly around me. My eyes burned with tears as I felt his own on my skin, his shuddering breath on my neck.

"I don't hate you. I'm sorry, it's not your fault" he mumbled.

"It's okay, Jamie" I mumbled, running my fingers through his messy hair.

"I'm sorry"

"Shh" I rested my head against his. "We'll be alright… And when you feel better, please, put Sirius out of his misery. He's sitting outside, worried"

"He lost the closest thing he had to a family" he sighed.

"Hey, we're still here for him" I said and kissed his cheek. "I'm still here for you"

* * *

**September, 1976**

"This feels strange" I frowned.

"Yeah, it does" James muttered, pushing his trolley.

He went ahead, going through the brick wall. Sirius followed and with a sigh, I went after him. The platform looked the same as every year, children talking, families gathering, toads escaping… Except it was different, because I was not with my trunk and owl and I would not be boarding the express.

"Well, I'm not going to fuss over you" I told them. "Go get good compartments"

"So motherly" James chuckled.

"I'm sure you'll make me owl anything you forgot… I'll see you at Christmas?"

"Yes" they said, looking around. For the boys no doubt, and James was probably looking Lily too.

"Behave" I said and then rolled my eyes at myself. "Why do I try?"

"I ask myself the same" Sirius grinned.

I rolled my eyes at them and kissed James' cheek.

"Go" I said.

He smiled at me and turned to leave. Sirius smirked and cocked an eyebrow.

"Do I get a kiss too?" he asked. "Mrs. Potter used to cover me in kisses"

"Yeah, right" I rolled my eyes.

He turned his face and tapped his cheek with his index finger, asking for the kiss.

"I'm gonna slap that cheek instead of kissing it" I threatened, my lips twitching.

"Alright… I'll let you owe me" he sighed dramatically.

"Just go, you goof" I rolled my eyes.

"Padfoot!" James called.

Sirius kissed my cheek quickly and rushed after James. I shook my head in amusement, watching them board the train.

* * *

**November, 1976**

"How are you two?" I asked Andromeda while bouncing Nymphadora in my arms, her hair changing from purple to blue as she looked up at me with her wide brown eyes.

"Good… It's difficult" Andromeda said, sitting across from me on her living room. "With Ted being muggle-born, I'm on edge every time he steps out of the house… If your parents were murdered, who is safe?"

That was true. Despite my parents have been powerful, our properties have protective charms over it, it did not stop Voldemort from finding them and killing them. Although my parents hadn't been hiding or in a safe place at the time of their deaths. Thankfully, the manor was still unplottable and still secure.

"No, no one is safe" I muttered, frowning, but Nymphadora's hand reached out for my chin and I smiled at her, playfully biting her hand making her squeal in delight. "Dumbledore contacted me"

"Hm?"

I eyed Andromeda as she sipped her tea.

"He told me you knew" I smiled. "About this secret order of his"

"Are you joining?"

"I think so… I just got a job at the Ministry, which could be very useful to him… I have several houses to offer as headquarters… And I have to do something. My parents were murdered, I can't let that go"

"Don't let your grief cloud your decisions, Ella" she frowned.

"Oh, I know" I shrugged.

"Does James know?" she asked. "If you told him he'll tell Sirius, and Sirius is a bit too eager for his own good"

"No, they are still underage… I'm not telling them anything. I know them, they would probably be happy to do risky things" I rolled my eyes.

"So, I'll see you in the next meeting?"

"Yes, I'll be there"

* * *

**December, 1976**

"So, Daniel, what is it that you do?" Sirius asked with the fakest smile.

"I'm a photographer for the Daily Prophet" Daniel said smiling.

"That must be… fascinating" Sirius said and James snickered.

I glared at them and my brother coughed to cover his snickers, but I just knew his hand was covering a shit eating grin.

"How fascinating is your sixth year going?" I retorted.

"Very much… We won against Slytherin in quidditch" Sirius grinned and turned back to Daniel, I groaned. "Do you like quidditch?"

"Not really" Daniel frowned.

"Really?!" James asked. "My sister was seeker, she enjoyed it very much. It's family tradition"

"It is not important" I said.

"You wanted to play professionally!" James argued.

"Well, I work at the Ministry now"

"Clearly settling for the boring" Sirius said reaching for his glass.

Why had I thought I could have a nice dinner with Daniel, my brother and Sirius during their winter holidays?

* * *

"Stop harassing Daniel" I told Sirius after dinner.

"I was just making conversation" he said innocently, but his lips stretched into a smirk.

"You were trying to make him look like an idiot!" I snapped.

"He just makes it too easy" he chuckled.

"Come on, Ella, you have to agree with Sirius" James said from his seat on the couch, watching us. "I don't know what you saw in the guy"

"As dull as Snivellus" Sirius said.

"You are an asshole!" I yelled.

"I am an asshole?! Have you seen your boyfriend?" Sirius snapped, frowning down at me. "Or have you kept you eyes closed the entire time? I know that snogging and shagging can cloud people's judgment…"

I raised my hand to slap him but he was quicker and grabbed my wrist before I could touch him. His frown deepened as I glared at him.

"Do not take liberties with me, Sirius, I am not one of your whores" I hissed.

"Let's all cool down, shall we?" James asked nervously.

"Then stop acting like one of them, so desperate for attention that you would settle for someone as boring as him" he said quietly.

"You're just jealous that as boring as he is, I still would rather be with him than a childish, arrogant, infuriating sixth year student... Still with school boy crush, darling?" I smirked.

"If I had any crush on you, it would have faded when I saw you with him… Maybe you are perfect for him, you must be so boring in bed, I would've killed myself after shagging you"

"I thought you would kill yourself for the chance of shagging me" I whispered tauntingly. "Because let's face it, the chance… is smaller than a grain of rice… smaller than your dick"

"Have you been wondering about my…"

"Okay, enough!" James snapped. "Really, you two are going way too far!"

We smirked at each other, none admitting defeat.

"You should let go of my wrist" I said quietly.

"You should stop staring at my lips" he retorted just as quietly.

"Presumptuous ass"

"Sexy witch"

James groaned again and left the room. I yanked my wrist from Sirius' grip and went to my own room.

* * *

"When are you going to put that boy out of his misery?" James asked.

I looked at him, lowering the Daily Prophet and cocked an eyebrow.

"Sirius"

"What about him?" I asked, going back to reading about an attack to a muggle home.

"Well… between the fighting and flirting…"

"His flirting, you mean"

"… I was just wondering if you were going to give the guy a shot" James said, continued to pile food on his plate.

"You do know that in a few hours there will be lunch, right? You don't have to eat everything on the table" I said.

"Don't try to change the subject" he chuckled.

"Oh, you wanted me to take that seriously?" I asked in mocking shock. "Forgive me, but it's so outrageous such possibility that I thought you were joking"

"Ella"

"We can't stand each other, James" I chuckled. "Even if he wasn't still at school for another year and a half… As you pointed out, we are fighting all the time"

"I call it sexual tension" he said matter-of-factly.

"I would love if you remembered I am your sister and wouldn't associate me with sex" I rolled my eyes. "It's mutual disliking"

"Mmhm" he said rolling his eyes, in a skeptic tone.

* * *

**July, 1977**

_Barmy old man, sitting there, sipping tea as if everything was alright_. I ran my fingers through my already disheveled hair, my other hand tightening around my wand nervously.

"Minerva and Horace are looking through Hogwarts and Hogsmeade" Dumbledore said setting his cup down on the table. "Is there anywhere else you can think where they could be?"

"No!" I snapped. "They should be here!"

"Well, the house is unplottable, protected, and the house-elves said it themselves… They didn't see anything out of ordinary. James and Sirius probably went out and forgot to leave a note"

"That's it?!" I glared at him. "That's how you are going to help me? My brother did not leave this house and forgot to leave a note. My brother and Sirius wouldn't disappear for a whole day, leaving note or not! We have to do something! We have to warn the Ministry…"

"Elladora, if the Ministry knew something about you brother, surely they would contact you, even if you are no longer his guardian"

"So, what do you want me to do?" I asked shrilly.

"We have to wait" he said, calm as ever.

"Wait for what? The news of their deaths?! You can wait here, I'm going to look for them…"

"If they were to return…"

I grabbed a coat and called for Hooky, who popped in immediately.

"If James or Sirius return, find me" I ordered him.

"Yes, miss" he said bowing his head.

"Elladora, what are you going to do?" Dumbledore asked.

"I'm going to talk to Narcissa and Lucius"

"That is unwise…"

"I don't care!" I snapped turning to glare at him. "My brother and Sirius are missing! I don't care, I have to find them! Even if it means I have to talk to that dreadful family, because if, Merlin forbid, Death Eaters took them, I'm sure they will know…"

"Revealing that you are very aware of their alliances…"

"Screw your damned Order! I will do whatever I need"

I turned to the foyer, marching to the door and threw it open. The summer sunlight almost blinded me as I walked out of the manor, slamming the door after me. I had walked a few steps down the stone path that led to the gates, when I saw two figures in the distance. I narrowed my eyes, squinting in the sunlight. James and Sirius were walking in my direction, talking and chuckling, even playfully wrestling.

"James?!" I called.

They stopped and James waved. I rushed to him, taking him in a hug, ignoring his grunt as I almost knocked him down.

"Missed you too?" he mumbled.

I pulled back and cupped his face in my hands, eyeing him. He looked fine, disheveled as always, but alright.

"What's going on?" Sirius asked amusedly.

I turned to him and grabbed him, pulling him into a tight one-arm hug keeping the other wrapped around James' waist. I buried my face on Sirius chest to hide my tears, the soft fabric of his shirt feeling cool under my flushed face. Hesitant arms wrapped around me and he looked down at me. I pulled back and he frowned seeing my wet eyes.

"Do not scare me like that, ever again" I choked out, turning to look at James as well.

"Sorry?" James frowned.

"You disappeared last night!" I snapped. "And no one saw you! Do you know how worried I was? I was almost going after Voldemort to find out where you where!"

"We were just out with Peter" Sirius mumbled.

"The whole night and morning?!" I scowled up at him.

I hated that they had grown so much this last year. I had to look up now.

"Yeah" James said quietly. "We stayed at his place, and walked around London before coming home… It's no big deal"

"No big deal?" I asked stepping back, Sirius' arms fell to his sides. "You two have no consideration for people's feelings?"

I turned and returned to the manor to tell Dumbledore the two idiots had returned and to send an owl to work apologizing for not showing up.

* * *

A wet, smooth touch to the side of my face made me take my head from my arms. I frowned at the black dog and he licked my hand.

"My mum was so sad when you disappeared" I mumbled. "Apologized for not taking better care of you, I was quite upset…"

The dog gave a soft whine, and rested his head on top of my hands. I cupped his face, scratching the fur of his jaw gently. His dark eyes lit up and he sat on his haunches, staring at me.

"I could ask you to stay, but you're an eternal stray, aren't you?" I murmured. "You would never accept a boring life with me, a companion"

He whined gently again and leaned closer, gently licking my cheek, wiping away the tears. I smiled and pulled away from him.

"Yeah… thanks, I guess" I said wiping the dog saliva that was on my cheek. "My idiotic baby brother and Sirius. Almost killed me, either from heart attack or from looking for them among the wrong people" I told him, scratching behind his ears. "I wished I could say I hate them for it, but really… I should have expected it. I expected it from Sirius – he's wild, and reckless, and has no consideration about my feelings…"

The dog whined louder, and pressing his face against my arms, he forced me to unfold my arms and legs from my curled position and settling on my lap, he nuzzled my stomach.

"… I expected it from him, because that's just the kind of thing he would do just to get on my nerves" I said, running my fingers through his fur. "But James… I thought he wouldn't, ever. Because he knows – I think – how worried I get, how nervous I am for being the only one responsible for him… He's seventeen now, but that doesn't mean that I don't feel responsible anymore. He's my baby brother, my parents needed me to take care of him"

I sighed, shaking my head. I looked at the large field with some wild flowers strewn across it. In the distance, the manor stood out against the overcast early afternoon sky. The day was a summer warm one, which allowed me to sit in the grass in shorts and sleeveless top, which was a rarity here. I lay back on the grass, staring at the grey clouds and Goofus shifted so his head was lying on my stomach. His paws were probably staining my shorts and I would have to apologize for Hooky, even though it wouldn't give the elf much trouble. Those magical fingers could do anything with a little snap. My eyes drooped, the exhaustion of staying up all night looking for James and Sirius, and the emotional stress of it finally catching up with me, and I folded an arm behind my head, using my other hand to continue to scratch Goofus. The dog quickly relaxed, his eyes closing and his breath evened and I smiled.

"You lazy dog" I muttered.

I let my eyes close, and immediately fell asleep.

A drop of water on my cheek awoke me and I groaned. The drops fell quickly, and as I opened my eyes, awaking to the pouring rain, I frowned at the heavy weight on top of my legs and stomach. I looked down and my frown deepened. Sirius laid on his stomach, on top and half between my legs, his head resting on my stomach while his hands held onto me by my ribcage. My fingers were lost in his shaggy black hair. He frowned in his sleep, shifting slightly as the rain fell over us.

"Sirius!" I snapped tugging forcefully on his hair.

"Ouch!" he snapped as he awoke.

I pushed him off me, and scrambled up. He rubbed his scalp as he stood up too, before pulling his wet hair from his face.

"You…! You! Ugh!" I growled, slapping his arm. "You arse! Eavesdropping on me!"

"I didn't eavesdrop on you!" he protested.

"You turned into a dog and let me talk to you!"

"You willingly talked" he shrugged.

"You… You were the dog all along?" I asked frowning. "That night in the cellar as well…"

"Yeah" he rolled his eyes, rubbing the back of his head.

"Ew! I let you lick me! I let you sleep with me! Ew! Ew! Ew!" I said punching his arm. "You pervert, dirty… dog!"

He chuckled and grabbed my wrist to stop me.

"You may be petite, but that… hurts" he said looking down at me.

"Why are you a dog?" I asked. "I mean, why, besides being a dog, you turn into a dog?" I glared.

"Hm…" he hesitated, eyeing me. "Moony"

"Moony…" I frowned and then my eyes grew wide. "You mean Remus?! You turn into a dog because of Remus?!"

"James, Peter and I…"

"James turns into a dog as well?!" I snapped.

"Wait, let me explain!" he snapped as I turned to go looking for my crazy brother.

"You three are the craziest, most reckless, unthinking, idiot…"

He crashed his lips with mine, ignoring as I groaned in protest. I tried to push him away with my one free hand, but he grabbed it as well and held it at my sides, as his lips gently caressed mine. He stepped closer so our bodies were pressed together, and even though I tried to fight it, my mind turned into a haze, my thoughts all jumbled as he ran his tongue across my lower lip, as light as a feather. As if sensing the fight leaving me, he let go of my hands and cupped my face. He pulled back an inch.

"I care very much about your feelings..."

I crashed my lips to his, cutting him off and grabbed his leather jacket, pulling him to me. We stumbled back and down to the ground, and even though we were lying in the mud it didn't stop us. He slipped a hand behind my neck, and with the other he grabbed my hip as our tongues battled for dominance. He won, exploring every crevice of my mouth sensually, keeping me warm even if we were soaking wet.

"God, I've wanted this…" he panted when we broke apart to catch our breaths.

I pushed him away, and rolled us over. His black hair turning brown in the mud as I looked down at him, straddling his stomach. He ran his hands up my thighs, and held me by the hips as I leaned down to kiss him. My hair fell over us, and he scowled as a muddy strand landed on his mouth. I pulled back, laughing as I pulled the hair behind my ears and he started laughing too. We looked ridiculous, soaking wet, the rain washing the excess of mud from me, while he lay on a puddle of it.

* * *

James froze, the sandwich halfway to his mouth and stared at us with wide eyes. Hooky disappeared and returned with towels and a blanket, even though the inside of the house was quite warm.

"What happened… to you two?" James asked hesitantly.

Sirius and I looked at each other, both dripping wet, with mud and flushed from running back to the house. I shrugged and using a towel to dry my hair I walked out of the kitchen. I heard the two of them whispering and James laughed. I poked my head back in and Sirius gave me an innocent look while James grinned at me.

"Don't look so happy… I'm going to talk to you about your stupid idea of turning into animals… Illegally!" I snapped.

He frowned, sighing, and I huffed before going to my room.

* * *

**September, 1977**

"We will not discuss it" I said as Sirius looked down at me expectantly.

His smirk grew into a mischievous grin, and his eyes sparkled. He was up to something.

"I say we act on it, not discuss it" he said.

"Even more unlikely"

"You liked it"

"I was caught by surprise"

"You kissed me"

"No, _you_ kissed _me_, and I, for a moment, must have lost my mind for thinking of reciprocating"

"You kissed me back because you liked it" he said stepping closer.

"Sirius" I said warningly, looking at all the people around us in the platform.

"Padfoot!" someone called.

"Go" I told him. "See you at Christmas"

"I was talking to James…"

"That can't be good" I cut in.

"… and I was thinking of getting a flat with the money my uncle Alphard left me" he said, shrugging.

"Why?" I frowned.

"I can't live with you forever, especially since I can support myself"

"Oh. Well, if I hear anything about a flat, I'll owl you" I said nodding.

"I wanted it in muggle London" he chuckled. "I don't think you'll find something"

"I go into muggle London" I protested. "Besides, why muggle London?"

"Because it would piss my mum off, even more"

I rolled my eyes and opened my mouth to say that he could count with my help to do that, when suddenly he kissed me. He pulled back as I pushed him away and I scowled at him.

"I'm gonna miss that" he said with a mischievous grin.

"You…"

He cut me off with a peck and rushed off before I could hex him. I shook my head, and turned to leave. I bumped into someone, and opened my mouth to apologize, but the words died in my lips as cold grey eyes looked down at me with amusement.

"Hello, Elladora" Lucius said. "So good to see you"

"What are you doing here, Lucius?" I asked, slipping my hands into my pockets, grabbing my wand.

"Just passing by" he smiled and looked over my shoulder. "Come to drop the kids off?"

"They aren't kids anymore"

"They surely aren't, hm?" he smirked. "It is probably impolite of me, but… Congratulations, Elladora. I'm sure my contentment with the return of your senses is the same of the Black family. Walburga will be happy, after all, not only you found a nice match, her oldest son can make at least one good choice"

"I think he was disowned, so it no longer concerns her. I'm sure Sirius' opinion is the same as mine" I frowned.

"Still…" he shrugged. "What are you again? Third times removed cousins? I thought incest was above you Potters… I think I've heard a rash opinion on it from your father"

"Correct me, but didn't a great-grandfather of yours marry Lycoris Black?" I cocked an eyebrow.

"My great-great-grandfather did, his second wife, and the only child born was my great-uncle" he retorted. "Please, Elladora, do not take this in the wrong way. The Black family will surely be relieved by the news"

"It's none of their business. Like it isn't yours" I snapped.

"I'll pass on the news" he said grinning. "Have a good day"

I clenched my jaw as he turned and walked away, willing myself not to hex him. The express started to move, and I turned back around, looking at the parents waving off to their children. What Lucius Malfoy could possibly want at platform 9 ¾?

* * *

"It is very convenient to you that I work directly with the Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation, isn't it?" I asked amusedly.

"You know very well it is, although I feel sorry for you, working for Richard Clarke" Dumbledore gave me a small smile and arched an eyebrow. "How is he, by the way?"

"Very well. Just returned from a quick trip to France" I said pointedly. "You know, to meet the French Minister of Magic and the Muggle Prime-Minister, who was there for their muggle wars affairs" I waved it off the last part. "The Muggle-Minister seems to be underestimating our current situation. Richard disagrees with Millicent, he thinks it's unwise to let the Muggle Minister aware of our conflicts, he says that if the Minister becomes too alarmed, he might break the secrecy agreement and we would have that problem to deal with beside Voldemort"

"I can't say I agree or disagree" Dumbledore said, frowning, deep in thought. "Perhaps it wouldn't be wise to let the Muggle Minister understand the extension of Voldemort's damage and power… But it would be foolish to leave him ignorant of what's happening, and dangerous. Knowledge can be power or liability"

"The French Minister said there haven't been any worrisome incidents there. A few people disappeared, but that's about it. But, he told Richard that he heard from the German Minister… They are having some trouble with people… very similar to what Richard described as Death Eaters"

"Of course Voldemort wouldn't be satisfied with England. I am surprised he didn't look for foreign supporters sooner" Dumbledore said, standing up and starting to pace. "The Ministry needs to try harder! This is getting out of control"

"Crouch has requested permission for the Aurors to use Unforgivable Curses. Millicent is uncertain about taking such measures…" I stopped, and sat forward. "Sir, I hope you don't mind me asking, but… Can't you do something?"

He stopped pacing, by his pensieve, and didn't turn around.

"I fear I cannot stop Voldemort myself" he said gravely. "I have been asked this too many times. It is not as simple as Grindelwald. I have faced Voldemort recently, and there was nothing I could do… There is something about him, something that… makes him too powerful. Almost impossible to defeat him"

"Then… Is he really immortal?" I whispered.

"That is certainly more impossible than his defeat. No one can be truly immortal, Elladora"

"But, and believe me, I'm not trying to praise you… But if you can't defeat him, sir, who can?" I asked, fearing his answer.

"I still don't know" he said quietly, still staring into his pensieve.

* * *

"How are you?" I asked.

"Good" Remus answered with a shrug, touching the scar on his eyebrow and gave me a smile. "What about you? How is working for the Head of International Magical Cooperation?"

"I would like to say boring" I frowned. "But with our current situation, my department is the second busiest one, after the Law Enforcement"

"James says the job allows you to travel… That must be some comfort" he said smiling sadly.

"Yes, I can't say it isn't" I smiled. "How are James and the boys?"

"Well" he shrugged and chuckled. "Nothing that wasn't expected happened"

I stopped walking and he turned to me with a questioning look. I looked around, it was dinner time and the corridor was empty.

"I know you would never do it on purpose but…" I hesitated and sighed. "Have they been hurt? During your transformations?"

"They told you?" he asked surprised.

"More like Sirius slipped the secret" I rolled my eyes with a smile.

"They're alright" he smiled.

I smiled with relief and we started walking again.

"I hear St. Mungos is looking into having a stock of Wolfsbane Potion" I said.

"Yes, but it will be a very expensive treatment" he shrugged. "My father already looked into it"

"If you need…"

"Thank you" he cut me off, clearly uncomfortable with where the conversation was heading. Remus was always too shy and proud to ask or accept money.

"How is your mother?" I asked softly.

"She'll be alright" he mumbled.

"I'm very sorry, Remus. Is there nothing I can do?"

"No, magic won't… Magic can't help her" he said in a rough voice and swallowed hard. "But she'll be alright"

I wanted to tell him not to do that to himself. Denial would only make things harder. It would hurt him much more if he continued to try to believe she would be alright. I grabbed his hand, and he stopped, looking down at our hands and back at my face. His eyes quickly shifted away when I saw the shimmer of tears. I hugged him, resting my head against his chest, and tightened my arms around his waist. He had grown so much. I felt small next to him, and yet, he had seemed so small when I saw those tears. He wrapped his arms around me, returning the hug and sighed against my head.

"Thanks" he whispered.

I nodded against his chest and pulled back with a small smile.

"How about we spend Christmas all together?" I asked. "You can bring your parents, I'll invite Andromeda and Ted, and Peter is invited too, of course! I already know the full moon is after the New Year's" I grinned.

"Sounds great" he chuckled.

I kissed his cheek and as we continued walking.

"So, what were you talking about with Dumbledore?" he asked as we approached the Great Hall.

"Just chatting a bit, silly stuff" I shrugged it off.

"Right. And you came all the way to see James?" he asked skeptically.

"Of course! Am I not a loving sister?" I grinned.

He shook his head in amusement and I bumped my shoulder against his arm playfully. I looked around the Great Hall, and saw Sirius, Peter and James sitting in the middle of the Gryffindor table, with Lily right beside my brother.

"When did that happen?" I asked amusedly.

"A couple weeks ago. They are friends… according to Lily" he chuckled as we walked over. "She actually started talking to him to ask about you, and finally let him take her on a date"

"Poor girl, don't know what she got herself into" I said shaking my head with pity.

"Yes, a loving sister" he teased.

"Shush, Moony" I said playfully.

"Yes, shush Moony"

I grinned at James as he stood and hugged me. I kissed his cheek and greeted Lily as she stood to greet me.

"You didn't tell me about James on your letter?" I whispered in her ear as she hugged me.

She shrugged as she pulled back, blushing almost as red as her hair.

"I didn't know family members had so much freedom to visit"

I turned to the girl who said it, frowning as she scowled at me, leaning into Sirius. Sirius continued eating as if nothing was happening. I eyed her, focusing on the hand that rubbed his upper arm, while her other was under the table, too close to his body not to be on his thigh. I cocked an eyebrow at her and smirked.

"Of course, people as dull as you would never know people as special as me, that have such rights" I said icily.

She glared at me, her face turning red as people close by laughed. I rolled my eyes at her speechlessness, and turning back around to talk to James and Lily.

"I won't be able to come to Hogsmeade the weekend of your game against Slytherin, to see you play and meet like we had agreed" I told him. "I'll be out of the country again"

"Fine" he sighed and gave me a small smile. "Join us for dinner?"

"Sorry, I already ate… I really just came to say 'hi'"

"Quill, ink, parchment, owl. That's what they are for" the annoying girl said.

James shot her a glare and I took a deep breath, letting it out slowly, convincing myself not to hex her, trying to think of all the reasons it was not a good idea. It was a very enticing idea.

"Sorry about her" James said, glancing at the table. "She's not really our friend"

"That friendly hand on Sirius' thigh explains it all" I rolled my eyes. "Well, I really have to go… I'm sorry"

He nodded and I said goodbye to him, Lily and Remus, waving at Peter, who gave me a smile. Sirius was still concentrating on his plate and the girl was still scowling at me.

* * *

December, 1977

"It is very nice of you to have us" Mrs. Lupin said gently.

"It was our pleasure" I said glancing at James. "I'm very happy that you are feeling better, Mrs. Lupin"

"Thank you, dear. Call me Hope" she smiled and turned to her husband. "I told Lyall he needs to have more faith in mankind"

I nodded, smiling as he kissed his wife's forehead. Hooky refreshed our drinks and I glanced at Remus, who was watching his parents with a smile. As if sensing my gaze, he turned and grinned at me.

"Yes, it is very fortunate that an anonymous well-doer decided to pay for your treatment, mum" Remus said, giving me a pointed look.

"I say it proves that can be better muggles are better than wizards most of the time" I shrugged. "Now, if you excuse me, Mr. and Mrs. Lupin, I'll take a few minutes to antagonize my dear brother and tease his guest mercilessly. After all, what an unexpected turn of events!" I said grinning at Lily.

"Ella" James whined.

"Oh, don't be a baby" I chuckled. "I was just going to say that I'm glad you invited her"

Sirius chuckled and I arched an eyebrow at him as I sipped my wine. He gave me a hesitant smile and I turned to continue my conversation with Mrs. Lupin and Lily.

* * *

"You look beautiful"

"You didn't knock" I said, still looking through my bookcase.

"What are you doing here?" Sirius asked, and I heard the door closing.

"I'm looking for a book for Mr. Lupin. What are you doing here?"

I looked over my shoulder and watched as he looked around, his hands on his pockets, highlighting the lines of muscle on his arms, and when he saw me watching, he grinned before sitting down on my desk.

"There are chairs in the room"

"I wanted to talk to you" he said, ignoring what I said.

"How is the flat going?" I asked, turning back to the books.

"Boringly well"

"Hm"

"You haven't seen it, you should"

"Hm"

"Of course, it is not as… grand as Potter Manor, but I think you'll like it"

"Mmhm"

He huffed and I heard him get down from my desk.

"Could you say something?" he asked exasperated.

"I did"

He grabbed my arm, turning me around to look at him. His grey eyes were a stormy hue, and his jaw was clenched tight, I feared for his perfect teeth from all the gritting. I cocked an eyebrow and pulled on my arm, but he didn't let go.

"You haven't spoken a word to me all night"

"I have spoken lots of words to you tonight, I asked about your flat and what you were doing in my study, entering uninvited"

"You know what I'm talking about" he growled.

"Do I?" I said, frowning in thought to mock him. "No, I don't think I do. I have spoken a lot tonight at dinner and after"

"To Moony" he rolled his eyes.

"His name is Remus, not Moony" I frowned.

"He likes the nickname"

"I doubt it"

"Oh, because you know him so well, don't you?"

I scoffed and rolled my eyes at him. He continued to glare.

"As if you have the right to be jealous" I said.

"I don't?" he cocked an eyebrow.

"No, you don't, Sirius" I said angrily and yanked my arm free. "I will be friends with whoever I want, Remus or not, ex or not. I will see, and talk and date whoever I want. It's none of your business!"

"I think it is! Because you kissed me…"

"You kissed me!" I retorted.

"You kissed me back!"

"Once!"

"It doesn't matter, you kissed me back. Then you disappear, only to return to Remus!"

"What?" I asked, almost laughing. "Don't be ridiculous!"

"I'm not!" he snapped, scowling at me. "I saw you two"

"Have you caught Dragon Pox? You must have been hallucinating" I chuckled.

"Don't mock me" he growled.

"Well, you practically asked to be mocked! Remus and I? Ha!"

"Stop denying it" he said, grabbing my chin and making me look into his eyes. "I saw you two at Hogwarts"

I frowned at him, but didn't try to pull away.

"He's my friend too, you know" I said quietly. "We were talking about his mother, I tried to be his friend"

His eyes softened and he sighed, the angry red his cheeks had turned slowly fading.

"That is why you decided to rub that horrible girl in my face, wasn't it?" I asked. "You were jealous. And as the immature git you are, you decided to make me taste some of my own poison, wasn't it?"

Ugh, Godric, why was I tearing up? _Stop, Elladora. Don't cry!_

His eyes shifted over my face and he leaned closer, pressing his forehead against mine. I tried to pull away but he used his free hand to hold me by the waist. I tried to push against his chest but he wouldn't budge.

"No" I said quietly. "You don't get to do this to me. You kissed me, and you had girls with you at Hogwarts. I'm not a toy, Sirius"

"I know" he whispered.

"Then stop pushing me around, stop playing with me!"

"Sorry"

"It's not enough"

"Please" he begged quietly, and I closed my eyes, still trying to push him away. "Ella… Merlin, I saw you with him and I saw red, I wasn't thinking"

"Like always"

"I've missed you"

I opened my eyes and looked into his, leaning back against the bookcase, but his body followed mine, keeping his forehead against mine.

"I hate you" I said quietly.

"You say that to your brother" he said, smiling.

"I mean it now"

"I love you too"

"No" I said, giving him another useless push. "I mean it, Sirius. You can't do this. You can't just apologize and say cute things and expect everything to be alright. I'm mad!"

"I know"

"I was hurt! You were an asshole!"

"I know"

"You still are. Standing there, pretending you care about what I'm saying, letting me insult you, trying to make me forgive you…"

His lips pressed against mine softly, cutting me off.

"Sirius, no" I protested weakly.

"I'm sorry" he whispered against my lips, "I hate myself for hurting you…"

"You'll do it again"

"I love you, I want you and only you"

I let him kiss me, really because I was too weak. When our lips parted, he pulled me the closest he could, embracing me gently, and while I rested my head against his chest, I felt him kiss the top of my head.

"I can't" I whispered, fighting the traitorous tears.

He didn't answer, his arms tightening around me, but sighed. The clock struck midnight, and we heard our friends and family celebrating in the living room. We broke apart and he gave me the tiniest smile I had ever seen play on his lips.

"Merry Christmas" he said quietly.

"Merry Christmas, Sirius"

* * *

**June, 1978**

I groaned in pain and felt a gentle squeeze in my hand. I sucked in a sharp breath and turned my head. It took me a couple minutes to get the fuzziness off, but as I blinked to focus, long black hair, grey eyes and sharp features registered in my mind.

"S-Sirius?" I croaked and winced. "Water"

His hand slipped from mine as he took a cup from my bedside table and with a flick of his wand filled it with water. He set it on the table, so he could help me sit up. I tried not to wince as he moved me, but my ribcage felt like it was on fire. Once I was propped up against pillows, he gave me the cup and watched as I took a couple of sips before giving it back.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, this time my voice was less rough.

"What am I doing here?" he scowled. "I blame that barmy old man! Dumbledore!" he said as I frowned. "How dare he put you in danger and not tell me… us. I almost had an apoplectic fit when I saw the news of your attack on the Daily Prophet, James almost hexed Dumbledore when he tried to tell him there was nothing to worry about…"

"Sirius" I interrupted and he sighed heavily, sitting on the edge of my bed, taking my hand again and playing with my fingers. "Where is James?"

"Lily was able to convince him to go home for a bit. He was stinking, in need of a nap and some food"

"You two should be at school"

"We already took our N.E.W.T.s and Dumbledore let us leave this week" he lifted my hand to his lips and kissed my palm, smiling at me. "So, you'll have me and James as nurses"

"Haha, very funny" I deadpanned.

"I will give you sponge baths and…"

"Sirius"

"Sorry" he chuckled.

"God, how long have I been out?" I frowned.

"Five days" he sighed. "Don't ever do that again"

"It's not like I planned, Sirius"

"Yes, but you have been working with Dumbledore… he told us. Please, don't do it again. You don't know how scared we've been. I couldn't… I wouldn't know what to do if something worse happened to you"

"Sirius" I sighed as he pressed my palm against his cheek. "We're at war"

"I know"

"So you know I can't just stand by and watch people get killed while I do nothing. Besides, they attacked me not for supporting Dumbledore, but for being a Potter. I can't change that about myself"

"How about becoming Mrs. Black" he smirked.

I rolled my eyes but was smiling. He kissed the palm of my hand again and lowered it, holding it between his, gently rubbing to warm it up.

"I just hate to think of losing you" he said, looking at our hands. "I need to protect you…"

"Come on, now you're just sounding cheesy" I said teasingly to lighten up the mood.

He smiled, and looked up at me.

"Well if you don't like cheesy…" he said, smiling, but his tone serious. "I'll be anything you want or need"

* * *

**End of July, 1978**

"Watch those straying hands around my sister!" James said playfully.

Sirius laughed as he sat beside me on the sand and I rolled my eyes before returning to my book. Sirius shifted closer and rested his chin on my shoulder to see what I was reading.

"Tsc, tsc. Here I was thinking you were reading about politics and international affairs, and I come to discover you are reading a romance! And a spicy one at that"

"It's cute" I said flipping the page.

"It's smut" he whispered teasingly in my ear. "Aren't you ashamed? Reading such things in public, in the company of your brother?"

"Well…" I lowered my book. "I prefer reading this, than watching that"

He followed my gaze. Lily was running from James, laughing, her red hair wild in the wind and warm, humid air. He chased after her, catching her easily, and after pulling her down to the sand they began to snog as if no one was watching them. It was cute, but he was still my brother, so after the first couple times it began to bother me a bit. Sirius chuckled, and I opened my book again.

"Why are you wearing that?" he asked.

I lowered my book again, turning with an arched eyebrow at him while he slid his hand up my thigh to my hip and tugged on the shirt I was wearing, smiling innocently.

"Considering that underwear…"

"It's not underwear, it's a bikini bottom"

"I bet the top of it is just as amazingly cute and sexy"

"I don't remember giving you such liberties to talk to me like that or touch me like that" I said.

"I'm just a friend wondering why you would risk tanning only half of your body" he smirked.

I looked down at my book before looking to the left. The sun blinded me for a moment, but I could see Remus in the distance, walking along the shore, hands in his pockets.

"It left scars" I said quietly. "And I don't want to upset Remus. He has a lot on his mind already"

"Oh" he mumbled. "Yes, I forgot about that… He's getting better. It was a good idea to bring him. He needed this. I think he's accepted it already, he just feels guilty for being here, in France with us trying to cheer up, when his mother died two weeks ago"

"Home he wouldn't get better" I sighed.

"Yes, but this is Remus we're talking about. You know how he is… Always feeling guilty"

"God, I remember when he bit me" I chuckled, rolling my eyes. "He never let that go, it was annoying after some time"

"He bit you?!" he asked alarmed.

I turned to him and chuckled.

"Not like that. We… Ahn… It was an accident, and he was human at the time" I shrugged. "He just lost control, we were caught in the moment"

His expression didn't soften like I expected. He went from alarmed to angry and I squeaked as he abruptly stood, throwing a bit of sand on me. I threw my book aside, rushing after him as he walked in the direction Remus was.

"Sirius, what are you doing?" I asked, he didn't answer me. "Sirius!" I grabbed his arm.

"Fucking… dog!" he grumbled shrugging me off.

"Sirius! Ella!" James called and I turned to see him walking to us with a confused frown.

"Sirius, don't. It was my fault" I said desperately. "Please, leave him be. He doesn't need this right now"

"Stop protecting him!" he snapped at me. "He swore to us he wouldn't hurt you!"

"It was my fault! I pushed him! I… Please, Sirius"

"What the hell is going on?" James asked, finally reaching us, Lily was not far behind.

"Show me" Sirius growled.

"It's nothing!" I snapped.

He grabbed me by the arm, easily pulling me even though I struggled.

"Let me go!"

"Sirius!" James snapped.

Sirius pulled on my shirt, the third button snapped, opening it further, and he tugged on the fabric, ignoring as I tried to pull it back and get away from him.

"Stop" I said angrily.

He grabbed me by both arms, stopping me. We glared at each other, ignoring as James calmly told us to calm down and ordered him to let me go. His hand trailed up from my upper arm to my shoulder and he stopped just beside the discussed bite scar. He looked down at it, his eyes darkening and his lips in a thin line.

"That… animal!" he growled.

"Sirius, mate, calm down" James said worriedly.

"He hurt her!" Sirius roared, turning to him and I flinched at the volume and tone of his voice. "He hurt Ella! Your sister!"

"I know" James said calmly. "But it's done, and he didn't mean to, you know that"

"What's going on?"

I reached out to grab Sirius, but my fingers met only air as he had already turned to Remus who had just reached us and was looking confused, and even more so when Sirius glowered at him.

"You promised me!" Sirius snapped. "You said you wouldn't hurt her!"

"Sirius! Stop!" I snapped. "It's not his fault!"

"It is!" he snapped at me still glaring at Remus.

Remus glanced at me, and focused on my shoulder before turning back to Sirius.

"I lost control, I… She told me not to tell anyone… I'm sorry" Remus said.

"You lost control?" Sirius scoffed. "Of course! I forgot, you're an animal and you just couldn't help but mark her, right? Like a dog marking his territory"

"Enough!" James and I said.

"Well you would know all about dogs, wouldn't you, Sirius?" Remus said, scowling. "I'm not going to fight you" he sighed. "I didn't mean to do that, Ella and I…"

"You hurt your best friend's sister! Your girlfriend! The girl I fancied!" Sirius growled. "You're no better than Greyback!"

Lily gasped, and James froze on trying to put some distance between the two men. Remus clenched his jaw and just stared at him.

"You don't have an answer to that, do you?" Sirius taunted. "Because I'm right. You marked her. Well, please look at all of your marks, she's suffered with the others even if she says this one was nothing"

"Sirius, don't" I said softly.

Remus looked at me and James sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"What other marks?" Remus asked, frowning.

"Sirius is overreacting" I said shaking my head.

Sirius turned, frowning at me, but as I looked into his eyes, silently begging him to stop, not to do that to his friend, his expression softened. I sighed, turned and walked as fast as I could without running back to our things. Grabbing my book, towel and sunglasses, I continued on my way to the house. The house was big, not as big as Potter Manor, and the ocean breeze flew in through all the many open windows. I walked up the spiral staircase, hearing the door open and close behind me and quiet footsteps. I had just reached the second floor when a hand took mine. I turned to face him. His grey eyes were filled with worry, and as he looked at me, regret and sadness seeped in. I let him pull me closer, I let him cup my face with his quidditch rough hands, and I let him wipe the tear that escaped.

"I loved him… He is our friend" I whispered.

"I know" he sighed, closing his eyes.

"His mother just died, why would you do that?" I asked frowning. "He doesn't need this. He doesn't deserve it. It wasn't his fault, none of it"

"Godric… I know" he sighed, leaning into me and pressing his forehead against mine, lowering his hands from my face to embrace me. "I know I was an arse… And now that I have calmed down, I know how wrong it was, I should never have said those things… But when I saw that scar, when I saw that bite…"

"He didn't infect me"

"It's not that. It's the fact that he kissed you, and he touched you… He bit you. You were his once. And I just let my jealousy get out of hand. Because I wanted to kiss you, I want to kiss you. To touch you. I want to _bite_ you. I want you to be mine and no one else's. Seeing you two together back then, it was easy, because it was only a crush, and I thought it would fade away. But I know now… I love you, this feeling only gets stronger each day and it won't ever fade away"

I reached up, settling my hands on the back of his neck, playing with his long hair and pulled him to me. His lips were soft, hesitant as they touched mine, but as I moved my lips against his, the kiss grew, more confident, more passionate, more dazzling. In the back of my mind, something continued to warn me that Sirius hadn't changed. He was passionate, loved fiercely and regretted his mistakes… but he hadn't grown up suddenly… He would always be a boy, a Marauder, longing for adventure, mischief, doing things without thinking. And this, whatever it was between us, would be doomed if we continued on this path.

* * *

The sky was dark and stormy as the mood between us. Lily and James sat together, talking so quietly I couldn't hear what they were saying. Sirius sat between me and James, knees bent, arms over it, and staring at the sea, frowning, deep in thought. I had returned to my book after asking James where Remus was. James said Remus asked him, demanded to know what Sirius had meant by other marks, but James hadn't said anything, so Remus went for another one of his long, lonely walks. I would have gone after him, but I knew these moments were precious to him, for Remus always valued silence and peace to organize the usually haunting thoughts running through his mind. My biggest worry was that he would apparate back to England, without telling us, and be confronted by the stress that loomed over him at home. With the death of his mother, his father's difficulty to find a job, and his own, the summer had undoubtedly started off awfully for him.

Sirius got up abruptly, and I looked up from my book. Remus was back, walking to us with his shoulders hunched, and a frown. His walk hadn't been very enlightening. Sirius opened his mouth to say something, but Remus walked past him and to me. He extended a hand down to me, and I slowly set the book aside and took it. Glancing at Sirius, I saw him watching Remus intently – not in suspicion or distrust, but with worry. I looked up to Remus' green eyes, and they seemed to be asking for something, but his lips stayed closed tight. I frowned in confusion and opened my mouth to ask something, but his hand taking the collar of the shirt I was wearing stopped me. I thought about stepping away, stopping him, but he seemed to need this. The only sound was of our breaths and the waves crashing as Remus unbuttoned the shirt, keeping his eyes on the task. There was familiarity, but nothing sensual or passionate about it. My blood didn't boil like the times when we were teenagers. My blood ran cold, and my whole body was frozen. I fought with the urge to stop him, to protect him from what surely would only bring sorrow and guilt. The shirt fell open, not revealing anything but my red bikini top. He looked up at my face after scanning me up and down, and rested his hand on my shoulder, covering the bite scar with his rough hand. Slowly, his hand pushed the light white fabric of my shirt off my shoulder, and the other side fell in synchrony, leaving the shirt to hang around me from my elbows. His hand slid down my shoulder, to my back, and his eyes darkened, watering slightly while he clenched his jaw, swallowing hard when his fingers met raised skin. I bit my lip as he traced the scar, the line going from my shoulder blade to my lower back, and then traced the matching ones beside it. Clawing scars. He stepped closer, so he could snake his other hand around me to follow the matching scar patterns on my other side. I wrapped my arms around him, hugging him tightly, comforting him silently, as he stilled his hands on my back but still touching the scars. He stood still in my embrace, and I glanced at Sirius. He was frowning, but not with jealousy, with worry. He understood Remus was my friend as well, and I loved him like a friend.

* * *

"Are you alright?" Lily asked softly as she helped me with dinner.

"Yes… I'm just worried about those two killing each other" I said, looking out the window.

"Relax, Ella. Sirius and Remus will be fine" James said walking in.

When Remus started with his apologies and asked how it happened and why no one had told him, Sirius told him to walk with him. That was almost two hours ago, and neither of them had returned yet. Lily gave me a comforting smile, and went to set the table. James stood beside me and I cocked an eyebrow at him, as he stared at the bowl of salad I had been preparing as if it was very interesting.

"Can I help you with something?" I asked amusedly.

"So, I went to my vault to get something before coming" he said quietly and glanced over his shoulder.

"And…?"

"Dad left me mum's engagement ring" he whispered and my eyes grew wide. "I… I want to ask Lily"

"Really?" I asked excitedly.

"Shhh" he hissed frowning.

"Sorry" I said sheepishly.

"Anyway, I just… I forgot to ask you if that was alright, I mean… Do you want the ring?"

"James, no" I said turning to him and took his hand. "Of course it is alright. I know I'm a bit selfish sometimes, but I'm a Slytherin what did you expect?" he chuckled. "But no. They left me her jewelry, and I knew the ring would be transferred to your vault when you completed seventeen. After all, the ring has passed on through generations of Potters to give to the women that join the family, it's tradition. I'm happy for you"

I hugged him and he wrapped his arms around me tightly and kissed my temple.

"Thank you, Ella"

"What for?" I shrugged.

"For taking care of me, for being my sister… For everything"

* * *

"Hey"

I propped myself up on my elbows and cocked an eyebrow at Sirius. He closed the door softly, and silently walked to the bed.

"When have I given you such liberty?" I asked, a bit amused.

"I was under the impression that you were quite happy with me" he smirked, pulling the sheet and slipping under it.

"I was happy you and Remus worked things out and didn't kill each other. That doesn't mean you can sneak into my room in the middle of the night"

He wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me close to him. He leaned closer and brushed his lips against mine.

"I couldn't stop thinking about you" he whispered.

I relaxed into his embrace, and shivered as he ran his nose across my jaw and to my neck. I shifted, lying on my back and he shifted so he was leaning over me. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and pulled him to me, kissing him softly. His naked chest felt very warm against my silk-clothed breasts and his hands seemed to burn my shoulders. We kissed for a long time, his hands never going past their path of shoulders-arms, even when our kisses grew. He settled beside me, lying on his side, and I turned on my side as well, smiling at him.

"Can you believe James proposed to Lily?" I asked quietly. "My idiotic, immature, silly brother?"

"He's quite changed since she finally said yes to him" he said. "For good, I think"

"You think?" I asked amusedly.

"Well, he isn't so inclined to practice our mischief" he shrugged smirking.

"When we get back… Are you going to continue with that mischief or are you going to look for a job and you know… be grown up?" I asked, tracing patterns on his chest.

"I still have quite some money left from my uncle's will, I'm not in a rush" he said and caressed my cheek. "I want to contribute as much as I can for the Order"

"I still can't believe Dumbledore let you in" I said rolling my eyes.

"Well, you are the proof that he lets anyone in" he said teasingly.

"Git" I said but I was grinning.

"Move in with me" he said.

"What?" I chuckled.

"Lily and James will want to live together… Why don't you move in with me so they can have the manor?"

"I can't"

"Why not?" he frowned.

"Because… There's a lot of things at the Manor that I couldn't leave behind, because that is my home and… It's too early, Sirius… We're only starting, give some time, let us get to know each other better. Believe me, you don't know what I am like when I wake up" I smiled.

"Believe me, Ella" he said smiling. "I long to know about it"

* * *

**REVIEW!**

**xoxo Luuh**


	6. Chapter 6

**October, 1978**

I grabbed the hat from his head, his black locks falling messily over his face, and grinned cheekily as I put it in my head.

"Why are you so obsessed with this?" I asked, playing with the hat's brim.

"It's cool" he shrugged smiling.

"Do you sleep with it?" I asked amusedly. "I haven't seen you without it"

He rolled his eyes and reached for the hat. I jumped back, out of his reach and chuckled, challenging him with my eyes. He smirked, and I turned with a squealed giggle as I run away, holding the hat to my head as I entered the forest. The ground was muddy from the last rain, and a cool autumn breeze blew through the trees, rustling the few leaves that still remained on the trees.

"When I catch you…"

"You can't catch me!" I called back, laughing.

I only heard his laughter, and after a couple minutes I stopped and turned around, but he wasn't there. I frowned, looking around, wondering if he might have climbed a tree.

"Giving up? Did I win?" I asked loudly.

I turned around to look for him in another direction, and squeaked when a black dog jumped on me, tackling me to the ground. His paws were on the ground above my shoulders and framing my hips as he licked my face and I laughed as I turned away. He changed back into his human form and grinned down at me before continuing to pepper my face with kisses. He wrapped one of his arms around me while using the other to keep his weight off me, and kissed me passionately. I ran my fingers through his long, shaggy hair, feeling something bubble inside me. It made my heart race, fluttering like a hummingbird's, my skin tingle and made me feel warm. He pulled back, gave my nose a gentle playful bite before rolling over. I followed his body, snuggling against his side, not bothered by the rocky ground, the mud, or the leaves that had clung to us. He kept one arm around me, looking up at the sky, and his other hand resting on his stomach. I slipped my fingers through his, and he gave a gentle squeeze before starting to play with my fingers absentmindedly. He used the hand that rested on my upper arm to tilt my head up and kissed me softly. When we pulled apart, I smiled up at him, incapable of putting into words how happy he made me. We stared at each other, and in his bright grey eyes I saw everything I felt. His eyes shone like never before, with pure happiness, love and wonder. I blushed as I recognized signs of devotion in the look he gave me and glanced down at his lips. They were pink from kissing and pushed myself up to meet them with mine. Our lips were merely pressed together, but as his fingers tightened around mine, I knew it was not a simple kiss. He never asked for his hat back.

* * *

**November, 1978**

"Can you get me a meeting with the Millicent?" Richard told me as we walked out of the lift and towards his office. "I want to speak to her about these ideas she's been having"

"Of course"

"And send an owl to the Bulgarian Magical Cooperation Department, asking if it's alright to postpone the moving of that damned dragon… Gringotts has requested it, and I will have to see if it can be done"

I nodded, scribbling notes and already thinking of some decent excuse to the Bulgarians that wouldn't let them know there is a possibility their dragon's moving could be postponed indefinitely… Those goblins never really put deadlines to their needs.

"And schedule dinner, for tonight, at the best place you can think of"

"Mr. Clarke, you had already scheduled dinner with Mr. Crouch" I informed him, frowning.

"Reschedule it" he said turning to me with a smile. "Tonight, I'm taking you to dinner. Make reservations at your favorite restaurant"

I smiled, refraining from rolling my eyes at, yet another, dinner proposal of his.

"I can't" I said.

"What will it be your excuse this time?" he asked amusedly, leaning against the door of his office. "Come on… It's been a long week, you have worked hard, let me take you to dinner to thank you for everything you've done for me"

"I'm sorry, sir, but I can't"

"Elladora…"

"Yes, she can't" a masculine, yet soft voice said.

Strong arms wrapped around me from behind and soft lips pressed against the side of my neck and cheek. I gave my boss a hesitant smile as I covered Sirius' arms with my own.

"We have plans… I came to steal her for lunch, if you don't mind. She's been working too hard, I wanted to make sure she would take a break and get some food" Sirius said.

"Of course…"

"Sirius Black" he answered, letting go of me to extend his hand.

"Black" Richard said with a forced smile.

"Thank you, Mr…"

"Clarke" Richard said more tightly.

"Right" Sirius stepped forward to my side, and wrapping an arm around my shoulders, he grinned down at me. "Well? Can we go, love?"

I left my things on my desk and took Sirius' offered hand as we walked to the lift.

"Incorrigible, still childish… Coming here, without asking if it was alright with me, just to mark your territory, and embarrass me with my boss…"

He cut me off as soon as the lift began to move, kissing me hard, pressing me against the back wall. I surrendered under his lips and moaned quietly as he deepened the kiss, his hands falling from my face to my hips. He pulled back abruptly and I frowned, but saw someone was in the lift with us. Had we stopped? I blushed bright red as Sirius stepped away from me, smoothing my clothes and avoiding the Minister's eyes. The lift stopped, this time at the atrium. She looked at us over her shoulder, smiling.

"Good day, Elladora" she said and winked.

Sirius found it amusing, but I found it mortifying. He dragged me by the hand to one of the fireplaces, and when I asked him where we were going, he only said it was somewhere he had to go. I tried to tell him I shouldn't take very long, since I had tasks to complete before Richard came back from his lunch.

"Richard sounds like an arse" he said as we waited in line.

"He is" I chuckled and leaned into him.

"Is he always asking you out?"

"Not always…" I said with a shrug. "Only since I began to work with him" I said smirking.

"Why didn't you tell him you have a boyfriend?" he scowled.

"I didn't have one"

"Well, what am I?"

"Are you my boyfriend?" I cocked an eyebrow.

"Well, considering the time I spent chasing after you, and that I am risking a lot by dating my best mate's sister… I would think you would understand that I want you as my girlfriend"

"Alright. I'll tell Richard" I grinned.

"And don't tell him I was a Gryffindor if he doesn't know already. If he thinks I'm a Slytherin, he'll think that I'm as evil as my family and he won't dare coming onto you…"

I rolled my eyes as Sirius listed all the characteristics I was allowed to tell Richard so he would look threatening, like his dueling abilities, his Quidditch beater strength and all the pranks he pulled on Snape… I was not, however, allowed to mention he had a silly school boy crush on me.

After spinning through the fireplace, we landed in front of a familiar little house, in a little wizarding village. I grinned at Sirius' and we walked up to the front door, but before we even knocked, the door swung open revealing Ted with Nymphadora on his arms.

"Say 'hi', Dora" Ted said smiling down at the little girl.

Her hair turned bright blue, and she hid her face in her father's shoulder, but waved shyly at us. I chuckled and kissed her head before walking into the house.

"You're late!" Andromeda called from the kitchen.

She came out carrying huge amounts of food and set it on the dining table.

"Sorry, Ministry was full" Sirius said shrugging.

"It always is" I rolled my eyes.

We sat down for lunch, and I ended up taking longer than I thought. Definitely longer than I should, but as Nymphadora begged me to play hide and seek with her one more time, her arms wrapped tightly around Sirius' neck, I couldn't make myself leave.

"So… Do you wanna have kids?" Sirius asked quietly, as we walked out of the front garden of the Tonks House.

"Maybe… Not now" I assured him.

"How many?" he asked, more at ease this time.

"One" I rolled my eyes. "I don't know if you noticed, but a child can be a handful"

"We can't have just one! We have to have lots!" he protested. "I mean, didn't you ever want more siblings? We could have a house full…

"Slow down there, papa bear" I laughed, rolling my eyes. "We'll discuss it, later, much, much later. But I definitely won't be having lots or a house full… If you want that, you can start searching for the crazy woman that would think that's a good idea"

He pouted and then pulled me closer.

"I'll seduce the idea into you" he whispered in my ear and then kissed my cheek. "At least five"

"Five?!" I spluttered.

* * *

**December, 1978**

"So, here we'll have the band…" I said, gesturing to the gazebo. "And right there the tables…"

"And here will be the dance floor" James said.

Lily squeaked as he pulled her to him, and started dancing.

"There's no music, James" she protested blushing.

"So?"

I smiled at them and Sirius snapped a picture of it with the camera he had found in my dad's study. No matter that I used the study, spending hours in there, it would always be my dad's. Lily and James smiled at the camera as James spun her around.

"Come on, Prongs, that's enough. That sickly lovey act will make your sister throw up" Sirius said grinning at me.

I rolled my eyes at him, but refused to admit that it was very strange watching my brother with his fiancée. He was no longer the childish, arrogant, git little brother, and that was still very hard for my brain to understand. To me he would always be my annoying little bother… I mean, brother.

"Shut up" I told Sirius.

He dropped the camera and ran to me, ignoring my squeak and protests as he threw me over his shoulder, carrying me around the gazebo.

"And behind here is where I'll be snogging your sister!" Sirius laughed.

"Sirius!" I laughed in protest, hitting his ass. "Put me down!"

"And now I'll be the one to throw up" James called, laughing.

Sirius spun around fast before setting me down. As I blinked to make the world stop spinning, he made it even worse, crashing his lips to mine passionately, contrasting with the way he cupped my face, as if I was made of glass. I got on my tip toes to kiss him back, running my fingers through his hair, and when we pulled back we were both breathless but grinning like fools.

* * *

"Darling, I think I got my zipper stuck! Will you help me?" Sirius called from inside one of the changing rooms.

"No, my sister will not help you, Padfoot!" James snapped from another changing room.

"Oh, Prongs, don't get your knickers on a twist or people will think you're the bride" Sirius teased.

"You're attracting an audience, boys" I said, still flipping through the magazine, rolling my eyes.

"I think that's what they want"

I looked up at Remus and smiled.

"Finally" I said standing up to hug him. "Where were you?"

"Got held up in a job interview" he said smiling down at me. "You look bored"

"Sirius is trying his third suit, and James his fifth" I rolled my eyes.

"Well, if they can't find anything that looks good on them, then prepare to wait the afternoon for me to find something"

"Nonsense, Remus" I said and turned to the girl standing in the corner, fidgeting as she waited for my orders. "Could you get something for him?" I looked him up and down. "Traditional, black, and perhaps… A dark green tie to highlight his eyes?"

"Or blue" she suggested hesitantly. "Green eyes are always highlighted when there's blue around"

"Good idea, thank you" I told her.

"Moony, tell me I'm sexy" Sirius said walking out of the changing room and spinning.

"No" Remus and I said at the same time. "Definitely not" I added.

"I have robes" Sirius sighed walking back in.

"Yes, and Lily's family is muggle, so you need a suit, not robes" I said.

"Will that sister come to the wedding, Prongs?" Sirius asked.

"Why the interest, Padfoot?" James asked teasingly.

"Well, Moony could use a pretty date, right, Moony?"

"You seem too interested in my love life, Padfoot… Why? Are you interested?" Remus laughed.

"Oh, yes, Moony. I've harbored a crush on you since you blinked those bright green eyes at me" Sirius said dramatically.

"Anyway, don't worry, Moony" James said. "Lily's sister is not pretty, not nice, not cute and has a fiancée that looks like an overgrown pig"

"James" I scolded.

"What? He does!"

I rolled my eyes with a sigh and sat back down picking up my magazine. James had barely stepped out of the changing room and I was already shaking my head. He sighed and went back in.

"Sir?"

Remus and I turned to the shy girl and she held up two suits for him, blushing bright red.

"I think this will suit you" she mumbled.

"That's what's expected from a suit, darling!" Sirius called out laughing.

She turned an unhealthy shade of red, fidgeting. Remus chuckled and took the suits from her.

"Thank you" he glanced down at her name tag. "Marianne. Sorry about him"

"I call him Goofus, pay him no mind" I said.

She nodded, keeping her eyes down. I bit my lip to hold back a grin, ignoring Remus' puzzled look as he went to the changing room.

"I'm not walking out on this" Sirius said.

"If it's too ridiculous even for you, then you might be right, darling" I chuckled.

"Yet, you love my ridiculous self" he called out.

I sighed, continuing to flip through the magazine. Sirius often dropped the word 'love' around me. Most of his proclamations were playful, teasingly, but every time he said it, I sealed my lips shut. I was so confused. I felt very strongly about him, perhaps stronger than what I had felt for Remus when I was a teenager. But sometimes Sirius pissed me off, being childish or reckless. I refused to fall fast and hard for someone like him. It could only end badly for me. The girl gave me a smile, amused by our antics, but with a blush, her smile turned shaky as Remus stepped out of the changing room.

"Oh, Merlin!" I said, standing up. "You look dashing, Remus!"

He blushed, looking down at the suit, and tugged at the sleeves. I walked to him, and fixed the green tie. I eyed it and turned to the girl.

"Could you get the blue tie you mentioned?" I asked her with a smile. "And pins for the fitting"

She nodded and rushed into changing room Remus had vacated to get the tie.

"I think she likes you" I whispered to him.

He frowned and looked at her as she returned. Like I expected, as he looked at her, she blushed bright red again. I chuckled, winked at Remus and sat down to watch his fitting.

"Tell me this is the one" James sighed, walking out.

He looked handsome and I grinned at him, he looked relieved with my approval.

"Change" I told him, looking back down at the magazine. "You don't need fitting"

"Thank Merlin" he said happily.

I rolled my eyes, and glanced at Remus and Marianne. He stood awkwardly as she fixed the fabric of the jacket, standing on her tip toes and still having difficulty checking his shoulders.

"Hey, Giraffe, it would be a good idea to bend a bit" I teased.

He rolled his eyes at the nickname, and bend down a bit, making the girl blush, stepping back so their faces weren't so close.

"So, Marianne?" I said. "How old are you?"

"Ahn… 18"

"What house were you in Hogwarts?"

"I went to Beauxbatons" she said quietly.

"And why are you working here? France would be much better for someone who wants to work on the clothing business" I asked, truly interested on her strange choice.

"Madame Maulkins is my aunt"

"Well, that explains it"

"If you're finished interrogating the girl, would you mind checking if this is alright?" Sirius asked.

I turned and stared at him. His lips slowly stretched into a smirk, clearly noticing my flabbergast reaction. He was too handsome for my own good. My treacherous mind conjured a image of him, smiling at me, with James at his side and a minister on the other. I shook my head to clear it up and smiled at him, feeling my cheeks heat up.

"Finally, that one looks alright" I said.

"Only alright?" he asked, walking to me, pausing on his way to spin to show me the look completely.

He reached me and grabbed me by the hands, pulling me to him and swaying in a valse.

"Sirius" I protested.

"I know you think I look sexy" he whispered teasingly and chuckled as I scowled at him. "It's only so I can match your everyday looks, sweetheart"

"You're an ass-kisser" James teased, watching us dance around the room.

"I'm just as much of a lovesick-fool as you are, James" Sirius retorted laughing. "But at least I don't moan her name in my sleep"

"You git!" James laughed, reaching for Sirius.

Marianne and Remus laughed while the boys playfully wrestled, while I watched, rolling my eyes, but amused as well.

* * *

**January, 1979**

"My sister is not happy" Lily sighed, right after Petunia stormed out. "She doesn't… ahn, like magic very much"

I nodded in understand but decided not to comment on her sister's behavior. It seemed like she didn't think being Lily's maid of honor as an honor. She had scowled at everything so far, and only spoke to talk about her own wedding. I closed Lily's dress and helped her finish her hair, distracting with silly subjects, from memories of Hogwarts and James' proposals to decorations.

"Sirius mentioned… And, well, I was thinking" I said, while curling her hair. "You and James haven't found a place yet, and maybe you shouldn't. After all, you are the Potters, and the Manor should be yours. While you two go on your honeymoon I'll find a place and…"

"No, Ella, don't" she protested. "Firstly, the house is yours too. Secondly, it's too big for my taste. Thirdly, we wouldn't mind sharing it if it was the case. Please, don't. I like you around, and I would feel awful if you left because of us. With you there, Sirius is there and the family is complete" she smiled at me through the mirror.

"Thank you" I said softly and pinned her hair. "There, ready"

"I really should have chosen you as maid of honor" she said and hugged me.

"Welcome to the family, Lily"

* * *

"Why are you sad?" Sirius whispered in my ear.

I rested my head on his shoulder, tightening my arm around him as we swayed to the slow song.

"I miss my dad" I whispered. "James didn't seem to miss them all night, he's so happy… But I couldn't help but think of them"

"They never left you, Ella, they will always be here with you" he said.

"Yes, I guess" I smiled and pulled back, rolling my eyes at myself. "I wonder what they would think of us and our future five children"

"Oh, so I finally convinced you?" he grinned.

"No, Sirius" I laughed. "Not even my love for you could make me do it. Three at best"

"Well, at least I finally got you to declare your love for me" he smirked.

I blushed, looking away from his sparkling silver eyes, watching James and Lily dancing. He chuckled, and tilted my head back, capturing my lips with his in a soft kiss. When the kiss stopped, we didn't pull back, our lips stayed less than an inch away.

"I love you" he whispered. "And you love me"

I chuckled quietly and kissed him softly.

"I do… I love you. There, I finally said it" I said. "Love you"

"Can I get you to repeat it until you get tired of it?"

"Sirius" I chuckled, rolling my eyes.

He kissed me again, murmuring 'I love you's against my lips repeatedly.

* * *

I gasped into his mouth as we crashed against the wall, with me pressed against it by his weight. He cupped my face in his hands as we continued to kiss, his tongue doing wonders that turned my brain into mush. Yet, my body was hyperaware of his touch, and it felt intimate as his fingers delicately undid my hair, running his fingers through my curled black strands. I pulled at his tie and when he pulled back so we could breathe, he kissed down my neck, whispering loving words against my warm skin. I tugged on his tie and he pulled back, but as I tried to pull it over his head, it got stuck on his nose and ears and we laughed. I loosened it further before pulling it off, and throwing it away. He smiled at me and cupped my cheek, caressing my cheekbone with his thumb gently.

"I love you" he whispered.

"I love you too, Sirius" I mumbled, feeling my eyes sting as they watered with the emotion in his eyes and words.

He kissed me softly, and embraced me, slowing everything down. When we broke apart, I took his hand, taking him up the staircase and to my bedroom. He closed the door quietly behind him, and I sat on the edge of the bed, smiling at him, trying to ignore the heat on my surely blushed cheeks. He shrugged his jacket off, putting it on the chair of my desk and stood over me, staring down at me. He kneeled down, and took off my high heels, his hands slowly running up my calves in a caress, bringing goosebumps. I shivered and reached for his shirt, unbuttoning the top buttons. He slid up, and kissed me, pushing me down onto the bed, climbing on top of me. My hands trembled as I tugged his shirt out of his pants, and finished unbuttoning it, slowly pushing it off his shoulders. He stopped kissing me to take it off and kissed down my neck as I ran my fingers across his muscular chest, feeling each crevice of muscles, every hair that peppered his skin. I kissed his shoulder, and then ran my tongue along his clavicle, my hands on his chest feeling the shiver than ran through his body. He pushed his weight off me, and holding himself off me with one hand he put the other on my hip, while keeping his eyes on mine. His hand slowly traveled up my side until it found the dress' zipper and then he slowly pulled it down. He kissed me as he grabbed the dress' straps and pulled them down my shoulders, but broke away as he pulled it down my body. I lifted my hips and he threw the dress on an armchair before turning back to me. I bit my lip as he looked at me, and his grey eyes had darkened to the point where in the dimly lit room they were almost lost. He took my hands in his, and pulled them away from my chest, uncovering my breasts as he leaned down to kiss me, holding my hands in his above my head. His skin felt warm against mine but it still brought a shiver. He pulled back and stood up, but kept his smoldering eyes on me. I sat up and undid his belt and fly, before tugging the fabric down his legs. He stepped out of his pants and climbed after me into bed as I scooted farther up in the bed. I lied back on the pillows and he lay beside me, wrapping an arm around my waist and pulling me to him until our bodies were pressed tightly, our legs intertwined. It was all overwhelming. His touch, his smell, his taste, the emotions. It felt like my first time, only more intense. He did it so slowly, so gently, while kissing me – distracting me – that I only noticed my knickers were gone when they were around my calves and I kicked them off. I kissed him more passionately, yet I felt vulnerable, lying there completely naked. His arm tightened around me, and I felt my blood boil as I felt my warmth pressed against his warm, muscular thigh. He groaned into my mouth and pulled back, but kept his forehead pressed against mine and his eyes closed.

"I never wanted someone this much" he whispered while I ran my fingers through his hair. "It's like… Merlin, I feel like I need to make you become part of me… completely"

"I know"

I understood, I felt the same.

He opened his eyes as I tugged on his boxers and helped me get rid of them, before rolling us over and covering my body with his. I bit my lip as I felt him against me, feeling heat flow over me at the sensation. He kept most of his weight off me, but pressed his hips down against mine. It was middle of the winter, we were naked, yet, our skin was clammy with sweat, and the warmth seemed almost overwhelming. My legs parted, framing his hips, and I wrapped my arms around his torso, pulling him closer. He kissed me, impossibly more softly than before, and with a shudder – was it him or me? – he was inside of me. I gasped and he pulled back, looking into my eyes. His breaths were more ragged, an emotion in his eyes was the reflection of mine. I pulled his lips back to mine urgently, kissing him like there was no tomorrow, trying to put everything I felt into that single kiss. It was passionate, bruising, fierce. He slowly started to move, thrusting in and out, our bodies warming up, sweating until his arms shook with the effort of holding himself up.

"Ella… love" he breathed raggedly.

I moaned his name, my hands slipping down his sweaty back, kissing his collarbone, and it only took a new movement from his hips, so that the pleasure became overwhelming and I threw my head back, screaming until my throat hurt and I had no voice. He tensed above me, and I opened my eyes just in time to catch his before his own pleasure became too much and he closed them, falling off the edge.

But that glimpse I had of his eyes reassured me of something.

I was his, he was mine, irrevocably, forever, unconditionally. There would never be anyone that could make me feel that way besides him, there would never be anyone who could worm their way into my heart and soul like he had. And although it seemed a scary thought, I only felt blissfully happy.

* * *

**REVIEW!**

**xoxo Luuh**


	7. Chapter 7

**End of January, 1979**

I bit into my strawberry, fighting a smile as Sirius grinned at me. I looked down at the Daily Prophet, but couldn't concentrate on the news, not with his hand tracing designs on my thigh. I shot him a look, but he ignored, sipping his coffee innocently.

"Your mail, miss" Hooky said, bringing a bunch of envelopes.

"Thank you, Hooky"

He put it on the table and with a snap of his fingers, there was a large piece of cake.

"Is it from the wedding?" I asked, reaching for it.

"Yes. Hooky has put the gifts in Master Potter's room, everything left from the party, except the cake and champagne, was given to servants as Miss requested"

I nodded, and was about to reach for my letters when Sirius' hand traveled a bit too far up on my thigh and made me squeak, consequently making me choke. I turned to him with wide eyes, ready to tell him to stop it, but his lips covered mine, stopping any words of protest. I heard a squeak and a pop, and was relieved to know Hooky had left, because Sirius was pulling me out of my seat and into his lap, where it became clear he was very… happy. I moaned into his mouth, running my fingers through his hair, lightly scratching his scalp, and he started to pull my nightgown up.

"Sirius…" I mumbled.

"Shh… You're my favorite drug" he said kissing down my cleavage. "I can't get enough"

I gasped as he pulled my knickers to the side and ran his fingers along my slit. I shifted so I was straddling his lap, and leaned back, ignoring the table's edge digging my back. He stroked me slowly, and rocked his hips up to meet mine.

"Oh, Merlin… Don't stop" I whispered breathlessly.

"Wasn't planning to"

He bit my nipple through the silk of my nightgown and the blew on the wet fabric, making me shiver. I pushed his robe open, and ran my nails down his chest, leaving marks and then tugged on the waistband of his sleeping pants. He kissed me passionately, and I almost forgot everything, including who I was with that kiss, but as he lifted his hips slightly, I quickly tugged his pants down and shifted over him. He bit my lip hard, groaning as I slid down on him, sheathing him fully, and I tensed. It didn't matter how many times we did this, I still felt overwhelmed every time.

"I love you" I gasped.

"Merlin" he breathed, his grip on me bordering on painful. "I love you too, Elladora, so, so much. Never… Never doubt that"

Our fingers entwined like our souls had, I never wanted to let go.

* * *

"We should move" I mumbled against his chest.

"Hm… no" he said, tightening his arms around my waist.

"The elves…"

"Learned that it is unwise to leave the kitchens unless called" he said amusedly.

"Good thing I told them to take that painting of my grandmother from the room" I said smiling. "Imagine her horror!"

"Why? Do you think that sex in the living room hasn't been done in the family until now?" he chuckled.

"I am a disgrace to all the graceful, dignified ladies of this family"

"Hm… Although I wouldn't call the last position 'dignified', I still think you were very graceful at it"

"Sirius!"

He barked out a laugh, and I rolled my eyes at him, kissing his chest, while his hand trailed down my naked back to my ass.

"I'll have to go to work tomorrow" I said quietly.

"Why?" he pouted.

"Because I can't pretend I'm sick forever"

"Maybe I could go with you" he smirked. "Richard will leave you alone and I will be able to enjoy you"

"You have to go home. It's impossible that no one has missed you all this time, Sirius. What if Remus or Peter went looking for you?"

"Remus is busy. He got a job at Flourish and Blotts, and has been visiting Madame Maulkins' quite a lot, something about a cute, shy girl" he smirked.

"Marianne?" I asked knowingly.

He shrugged, but his smirk grew.

"Why are you so amused?" I asked.

"Because I finally have something to tease him with"

"You're incorrigible" I laughed.

"And insatiable" he said huskily, leaning in to kiss me, while pulling me tighter against his naked body, gripping my ass.

"Hey, I'm home… EW! EW! OH, MERLIN!"

I pulled back from Sirius so abruptly I fell off the couch. James was covering his eyes while Lily hid behind him, chuckling. I grabbed the discarded blanket and covered myself with it while scrambling up and throwing Sirius his boxers.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Sirius asked, tripping as he got dressed.

"You… You git! I'm home from my honeymoon!" James roared, but wasn't very frightening with his hand over his eyes. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

A laugh escaped me and I grabbed Sirius' hand, dragging him upstairs so we could get decent before my brother had a heart attack.

* * *

**February, 1979**

"How is work, Ella?" Lily asked.

I turned and glared at Sirius, who leaned back on his chair, putting his arm on the back of mine and smiling contently.

"I wouldn't know" I said sharply.

"What happened?" Remus asked, looking between me and Sirius with amusement.

"I got fired" I deadpanned.

"Oh, I'm sorry" Marianned said with a soft smile.

"What did you do, Sirius?" Peter asked chuckling.

"This is not funny!" I snapped at him.

The boy almost cowered into his seat. I rolled my eyes at him.

"I did nothing…" Sirius said innocently. "That her boss wouldn't have done it"

"I doubt very much he would have done that" I said angrily.

"I didn't hear you complaining" he grinned. "I only heard you… agreeing, very loudly"

"Oh, come on" James groaned with a scowl. "I've heard enough"

"You were fired for having a relationship with him?" Marianne asked confusedly.

The men, except James, snickered at her naivety.

"She was fired for having sex on her office" Peter chuckled.

"Oh his office" Sirius corrected, grinning victoriously.

"You think that's funny?" I asked, scowling at him. "You know how hard I've worked to get that job?"

"Come on, Ella, you don't need it. You could be with us, fighting for the Order" Sirius said, and sipped his butterbeer as if we were discussing the weather.

"You're an asshole!" I yelled, standing up, knocking my chair back. "You humiliated me! You got me fired! I hate you!"

"Always so melodramatic" he rolled his eyes.

I slammed two galleons on the table and walked away, pushing Tom out of my way as I walked out of the Leaky Cauldron. The tears that gathered in my eyes only made me angrier. Why did I ever think he would be considerate? Why did I ever think I could count on him? I trusted him and he didn't even care that I was deeply upset. I should have gone straight home after being fired. I shouldn't have showed up at the pub like I had told the group I would.

"Ella!"

I ignored him as I continued to walk down the street. Angry and upset as I was I would probably splinch myself if I apparated.

"Elladora! Wait!" Sirius called. "Where are you going?"

"Home!" I snapped without turning around.

"Let me take you. Come on, the bike is this way…"

I turned around and he must have seen how deeply angry I was by my glare, because he stopped and stared at me.

"I don't want to get on that stupid, crazy, idiotic, ugly, silly, fucking flying bike of yours!" I roared. "I want you to leave me alone!"

"Come on" he sighed. "Don't turn this into something…"

"Don't you dare try to make it seem like I'm exaggerating!" I snapped. "You got me fired, Sirius! You stole my knickers, glued it to his office door and left him a note! What the hell were you thinking?"

"It was just a joke... The guy was always coming onto you, I only wanted to – "

"To what? To mark your territory, like you once criticized Remus for, supposedly, doing? You're not at school anymore! You can't do that, Sirius! Grow the fuck up!"

"I'm sorry" he said.

"No, you're not. You were laughing about it"

I took a deep breath and wiped the tears that had escaped. I had worked so hard for that job. I was going to follow my dad's footsteps… Now it was all lost. I felt his fingers brushing my cheek and I swatted his hand away. He tried to hold my arm, but I grabbed his wrist and frowned at him.

"I'm mad. Really mad. You can't fix this that easily" I said seriously. "You… You ruined my dream"

He swallowed hard. Apparently, the gravity of what happened was finally sinking.

"Leave me alone"

I dropped his wrist, turned and walked a few steps before apparating.

* * *

"He feels bad" Lily said. "I know what he's done was… awful, and really, you shouldn't forgive him so easily. But he never meant to hurt you"

"He glued my knickers to my boss's office's door, where everyone saw it, but waited for Richard to see… and that only happened when I was following him back to his office. Where he proceeded to turn, and return my knickers saying I could get my things and leave"

"Sirius is… silly" she said lamely and I scoffed. "Okay, he crossed the line on stupidity, but at least don't ignore him so thoroughly. You haven't spoken to him in a week"

"I'm still upset" I shrugged, reaching for my coffee. "I'll talk to him, I will, but not now… It would be too easy on him"

"Good morning, dear sister" James said, walking in, practically dancing. "And good morning, my beautiful, stunning, wonderful wife!"

He kissed her and she blushed bright red, trying to hide it behind her mug as he sat down beside her.

"You're in a good mood" I deadpanned.

"You're in a bad mood" he retorted, buttering his toast. "I had a good night," Lily glared at him, turning an unhealthy shade of red, "the day is quite pretty, and I think we've found our house"

"Oh?"

"Yes, sorry, I forgot to mention it" Lily told me, smiling. "We found this cute little house in the village. That way we won't be very far"

"I have to get the money from Gringotts this morning" James said. "The owner has gone a bit mad and doesn't want me to put the money on a vault"

"Mad?" I frowned.

That could never be a good sign when buying a house, right?

"James" Lily scolded softly. "He seems scared" she told me. "Said he's leaving the magical world until someone puts it back on its tracks"

"Then he's not mad, is he?" I said with a sigh. "Can't judge him for wanting to leave. I've been thinking about it myself…"

I trailed off as an unfamiliar, black eagle owl tapped on the window before viciously scratching the glass. Hooky popped in and looked terrified.

"Forgive Hooky, Miss. Owl wouldn't give in the letter for Hooky" he squeaked.

"It's alright" I said, standing up.

"No, Miss, no!" Hooky protested, grabbing the edge of my robe as I stepped towards the windows. "Do not touch the letter, Miss. Evil things, evil!"

"What are you going on about, Hooky?" James asked with a frown, standing up himself.

"Black letter" Hooky mumbled fearfully, staring at the wall.

"Black magic?" Lily asked confused.

I frowned at the owl and glanced at James, before looking down at Hooky.

"It's from a Black?" I asked.

"That's not Sirius' owl" James frowned as Hooky nodded.

"Sirius wouldn't write, he would come in through the floo without warning" Lily said, rolling her eyes in amusement.

"It's alright, Hooky" I said prying his fingers from my robe.

He shook his head in disagreement but stayed frozen, watching me with his wide eyes as I walked to the window. I opened the window and the owl extended its leg. I carefully took the letter and before I could turn and get something from the table as a treat, the owl was gone. I closed the window, staring at the beautiful handwriting, spelling my full name. The parchment was sealed with the Black's crest on the grey wax. I walked back to the table, eyeing it wearily. I couldn't put past one of the Blacks to send me a cursed letter. But my curiosity was stronger than my sense of self-preservation, so I opened it. We all held our breaths, waiting for me to fall dead with a curse or something, but nothing happened. I opened the letter and my eyebrows went to my hairline as I scanned the end and saw Walburga's name.

_Elladora,_

_Orion and I would like to invite you for dinner. Putting aside our past differences, we still find you a good representation of the family, once you got past that rebellious stage. We have heard of your relation with Sirius, and are very pleased that both of you have got back on the right track and realized a pure-blood would be the best and only acceptable relationship for people as noble as you. _  
_ Of course, the invitation extends to Sirius, and would be very pleased to put our quarrels aside. I would tell you to bring your brother so we could discuss dowry and engagement announcements, but I have heard the appalling news of his marriage. We can only hope it's only a stage as you and Sirius had it, do not fret, he'll come to his senses…_

I scowled at the letter and looked at James. His brows had been furrowed with concern, but shot to his hairline at my angry scowl. I extended him the letter, carefully so Lily wouldn't get a glimpse and he scowled as he read it.

"Crazy, horrendous woman! Rebellious stage! Dowry! Engagement!" I muttered angrily, sitting back down. "I don't want to see her son painted gold at the moment and she wants to discuss marriage! Noble!" I scoffed.

"Pay them no mind, Elladora" James sighed, crunching the parchment and giving it to Hooky. "Burn it" he ordered.

Hooky nodded enthusiastically and rushed out. I stabbed a piece of melon with my fork and glared at it.

"How dare she? She insulted me, she harmed me!" I grumbled.

"She's desperate" Lily muttered.

I looked at her with a frown, but she was frowning down. I followed her gaze to the Daily Prophet and she hesitantly extended it to me. I took it, not understanding what she meant, but it didn't take long to find on the front page what she meant. There, on the bottom of the page, was a tiny square, an announcement from the House of Black that their heir, Regulus Arcturus Black, had died. My eyes widened as I took in the information about funeral.

"Regulus died" I mumbled.

"What?!" James burst, taking the paper from my hands. "Oh, shit…"

"Her son died and she is already arranging marriages for the only hope to carry the family's name" I said, finally understanding. "The Black name is dissolved, Narcissa married Malfoy, Bellatrix married Lestrange, and the only male heir…"

"Is Sirius" Lily said in horror. "That's all he is to them? A name to carry on?"

"Yes" James and I said.

"I'm going to his flat… If he has seen this, or worse, got a letter from her, he'll be not in the right state of mind" James sighed.

"No" I said, standing up. "I'll go. Go to Gringotts, buy the house, I'll check on him"

* * *

I wiped soot off me as I stepped out of the fireplace, looking around. I had been to Sirius' flat once before, but it was all tidy… Now there were glasses left on the coffee table, an used plate, pillows thrown around, a blanket falling from the couch, ashtrays full, and even clothes scattered. I stepped over a T-shirt, in the direction of the windows, hoping to get some fresh air as soon as I opened them. There was no wind or even a light breeze, so the room's air wasn't immediately freshened like I hoped. I took my wand and waved it at the living room.

"Sirius?" I called, going to the kitchen as the living room started to clean itself up.

He wasn't in the kitchen, which was very hard to check with the mess that it was. I shook my head and walked to the bedroom. The door was ajar, and as I knocked on it, it swung open. I fought a smile at the sight of Sirius. He was lying on his stomach, in the middle of the bed, his arms thrown out, and only wearing his boxers.

"Sirius" I called again, walking to the bed. "Sirius, wake up"

"Hm…"

I leaned over and brushed my fingertips on his cheek. The skin was rough, he needed to shave. His hair was wilder than James, strands covering his eyes. I pulled the strands back, sitting on the edge of the mattress and ran my fingers across his jaw. His eyes fluttered, but didn't open.

"Sirius" I said softly, "Come on, darling, you need to wake up"

He groaned as I rubbed his cheekbone with my thumb, and his eyes finally fluttered open. They were light grey and glassy with sleep, he blinked a couple times while staring at me. His lips stretched into a smile and he covered my hand with his, holding it to his face. He turned his face, kissing my palm, while shifting so he could reach out for me with his other hand. I let him pull me closer, almost lying beside him, and smiled weakly as he kissed my wrist.

"It's hard to know if I'm still dreaming" he said. "How I've missed you…"

I smiled at him, and leaned down to kiss him softly. He insisted on pulling me, so I gave in, climbing in bed and wrapping my arms around him as we kissed. He rolled over, covering my body with his, and pulled back from my lips to kiss down my neck, his hands already slipping under my blouse.

"Sirius… wait, we need to talk" I breathed.

"No, no talking" he whispered huskily. "We need some make up sex, that's what we need"

I sighed, letting my eyes close for a moment as he sucked on my neck before dropping a wet kiss.

"No… Sirius" I said, pushing on his shoulders. "I need to tell you something"

He sighed and buried his face on my shoulder, breathing deeply. His hands slipped out of my blouse, but he wrapped his arms around me tightly.

"Please, Cassie… I need you" he whispered.

"Are we back to 'Cassie'?" I asked, running my fingers through his hair.

"I had a nightmare. Elladora Potter turned into Elladora Black, beheading me in her anger" he said in an amused tone.

"You think it's funny that I'm named after a woman that beheaded elves?"

"A bit… You're the complete opposite. Gentle, kind, beautiful…"

Speaking of the Black family…

"Sirius, I have to talk to you" I said seriously.

He pulled back, frowning down at me.

"You know I never meant to hurt you, right?" he said quietly. "I didn't think it through…"

"That doesn't matter right now" I shook my head and sighed. "It's about your family"

His frown deepened and he clenched his jaw.

"What about them?" he asked.

"It's Regulus… he…"

"He what?" he asked when I trailed off.

"He died" I whispered.

He blinked at me.

"He what?" he asked quietly.

"It was on the Daily Prophet… Your parents will have the funeral…"

He pushed off me and got up before I finished, rushing out of the room. I followed him, tripping on one of his discarded jeans. He was in the living room, reading the paper, looking for what I had just told him.

"I don't…" he frowned in confusion. "He was with them. How…? Why would they kill him?"

"It doesn't say how he died" I mumbled.

He turned abruptly to me.

"How?! Of course it was them! Who else?! They're killing everyone!" he roared.

I flinched at his tone, and looked down. He was right. Who else would kill Regulus? Who would dare kill the heir of the ancient and noble House of Black? Aurors didn't have permission to use unforgivables, so it was very unlikely that whoever killed Regulus was doing it for protection or defense. But why would they kill him? He was just a boy, he was on their side.

Sirius sighed and I felt him getting closer. He hugged me, burying his face on the crook of my neck.

"Sorry, sorry…" he muttered so quietly I almost didn't hear him.

I wrapped my arms around his waist, and sighed against his shoulder.

"It's okay" I whispered.

"I shouldn't have left him… I should have done something"

"He chose his path, Sirius"

"But… Maybe… Maybe I could've done something. I could've been his friend, even though he was in Slytherin… He would have left that house with us and…"

"No, Sirius" I said, tightening my arms around him. "It's not your fault. He chose this path and there was nothing you could've done"

He tightened his arms around me painfully and kissed my neck.

"I love you too" I whispered.

* * *

**March, 1979**

Although it was spring, the rain was pouring, matching the mood. Sirius' held my hand tightly in his as we stood back, watching his brother's funeral. Of course, we were noticed, but no one had said a word. I stepped closer to Sirius, wrapping my free hand around his upper arm as he stared stonily at his family. There was a coffin, but from what I heard, there was no body. It was lowered to the ground, and people slowly drifted, leaving only the Blacks. Walburga had a handkerchief in her hand, but wasn't crying, much like Orion, who stared at the ground. As I watched Bellatrix and Narcissa walk away with their husbands, I saw two big eyes between the bushes surrounding the graveyard. After the Malfoys and the Lestranges passed, Kreacher dared poking his head out. The abused house elf had tears in his eyes and his ears were low against his head. Sirius stepped forward, bringing my attention back to him, and I followed him to the grave as he twisted the red rose on his hand. Walburga watched us approach, staring at us, while Orion kept his eyes on the grave, much like Sirius. Sirius dropped the rose, and after a moment, turned to leave.

"I was disappointed about not receiving an answer on that dinner invitation, Elladora" Walburga said coldly.

Sirius stopped, looked down at me with a frown and with a sigh I turned to face her.

"You should know better than expect anything from me, Walburga" I said just as coldly.

I turned back, and Sirius and I walked away. As I got on the back of his bike, I had the pleasure of seeing her disgruntled expression.

* * *

**April, 1979**

Sirius grabbed me by the waist, pulling me roughly, and the spell missed us for an inch. He pulled me behind a wall and looked down at me breathing heavy. Slowly his lips stretched into a grin.

"Isn't this fun?" he asked.

"Definitely" I rolled my eyes in amusement and brushed my fingers close to the cut on his forehead. "Are you alright?"

"Better than ever!"

He kissed me passionately and jumped back into the fight. I chuckled and slipped out of my hiding spot, cursing a Death Eater from behind. While it was extremely dangerous, Sirius was right. The rush of adrenaline made it fun. As I cursed another Death Eater, I attracted someone's attention. Bellatrix smirked at me as she strutted my way, and gave me a mock bow before flicking her wand in my direction. I jumped out of the way of the curse, and counter-attacked, trying to disarm her. We went on like that for several minutes until a spell brushed past my shoulder from behind, burning the fabric of my jacket and blouse and the skin. I squeaked and glanced over my shoulder. It took me a moment to recognize, the slimy hair, the black eyes the hooked nose… Snape. The surprise of his presence was used to Bellatrix' advantage and before I knew it, I flew back with the force of the spell she hit me with and fell into the hard ground. My whole body ached and as I opened my mouth to breathe deeply, I choked on something.

"Ella!" I heard James calling.

He was the first to reach me I think. I remember him falling beside me, wrapping his arms protectively around my body and then we were spinning. It was too much, and I closed my eyes.

* * *

_"… reckless, irresponsible, stupid…"_

_"When I get Snivellous I'm going to twist his skinny little neck"_

_"Snape was there?!"_

_"I really don't understand why you seem so surprised, Lily… Is she going to be alright, Madame Pomfrey?"_

"Alright? Of course, she's a strong girl and I'm a good healer. But she still shouldn't be risking herself! In her condition…"

"What condition?" I croaked. "Of dumb one?"

"Thank Merlin" I heard Sirius sigh. "Don't ever do that again"

"What? Turn my back on the opponent? It was fun" I deadpanned.

"Yes, yes, very fun" Madame Pomfrey said sarcastically. "You get to make jokes later, girl, now, open up, drink this"

I opened my eyes and saw I was in my own bed. I opened my mouth and she poured the contents of the vial into my mouth, it tasted like overcooked cabbage and I winced as I swallowed it.

"Now, I do not judge anyone who wants to fight" Madame Pomfrey started with her hands on her hips. "But as a person, and not a Healer, I cannot help but wonder what the devil is wrong with you, Ms. Potter? How reckless and irresponsible? I think Mr. Black is rubbing off on you"

Sirius smirked at me and she shot him a glare.

"And you, sir, you should have made sure she was safe. In her condition, this curse could be deadly!" she turned back to me. "Now, I would put you into complete bed rest, but I know you will go insane in bed with all the things you'll need to do…"

"Again" I interrupted frowning. "What condition?"

She opened her mouth but then shut it, her scowl softening. I glanced at Sirius, James and Lily, but they seemed as clueless as me.

"What's wrong?" Sirius asked worriedly.

"Well…" she hesitated and gave me a small smile. "Forgive me, I thought you knew"

"Knew what?" James snapped.

"James" Lily scolded softly, but still had a worried frown.

"You're pregnant" Madame Pomfrey said, her smile widening. "Congratulations"

I blinked at her twice, waiting for her to tell me this was one of the Marauders' pranks, and that they had asked her for help. I glanced at James and Lily. James looked horrified, while Lily looked shocked. I looked back at Pomfrey. She seemed to catch up that what she said was not funny, for her smile was faltering. Still she didn't say it was a joke. My head snapped to Sirius' so fast I got a bit dizzy. He was still staring at Pomfrey, in horror.

"P-Please, tell me this is a joke" he said.

I blinked once more.

"It is a joke, right?" Sirius asked, almost desperately. "James? Funny, mate, really…"

"Sirius" Lily scolded.

He seemed to realize what he was doing, and turned sharply to me. He stared blankly at me, and my vision blurred with tears. He wanted to run. The desire to turn and run as fast and as far as he could was clear in his eyes.

"This is not good for her" Madame Pomfrey said quietly. "Come on, leave her to rest"

"Ella…" Sirius whispered.

I put my head in my hands, pressing the palms to my eyes tightly, trying to stop the tears.

Don't cry, Elladora, you're stronger than this.

"Ella, please" he said softly, trying to pry my hands. "I'm sorry, I…"

"You don't want it! You can leave!"

"No!" he protested, taking my hands away from my face but I kept my eyes down. "I'm sorry. I just wasn't expecting, or planning, or… I never thought… Well, not now. But, this is good, really good. We can start on our little litter of five"

I looked up and he was smiling hesitantly at his joke. He wiped away my tears and kissed my nose.

"I love you" he whispered.

"Baby Black" I muttered. "That's… unbelievable"

Would Walburga have cursed me into this? She was so desperate to have an heir…

Sirius rested his hand on my stomach, halting my thoughts. He looked down with a light frown, deep in thought, as if he could see the baby if he stared hard at my stomach. I giggle, and took his hand in mine.

"That's my stomach, silly" I said pulling his hand to my lower stomach. "The baby will be here"

He looked up at me with a smile, and I erased all thoughts of a possible Walburga curse.

This wasn't a curse, this… was a blessing.

* * *

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**xoxo Luuh**


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